Manipulations of the Heart
by ChosenChild
Summary: Frustrated with her lack of progress taking Kaito's heart, Akako decides to change her strategies... Kaito can't be influenced by magic... But his detectives are susceptible to her powers... Platonic love everywhere! NOT a ship fic, but shippers WILL probably like it. My favorite fic to write. Friendship everywhere Akako, Kuroba Kaito, Hakuba Saguru, Edogawa Conan, Kaitou KID
1. Making Plans

**So I've been hinting at this for a while. But I wanted to write more before I did. However, I decided I've been making you wait long enough.**

 **I _love_ writing this fiction!**

 **Shout out to CG, Dreamlight Violet, and allietheepic7**

* * *

Akako was not pleased with her progress, or lack there of, with Kaitou KID. Kuroba Kaito remained impervious to her charm. A large part of her dissatisfaction was derived from a magazine quiz that Keiko-chan had brought to school. The quiz was entitled "Does He Like You?" the other girls had laughingly told her that _she_ didn't need to take the quiz. Akako agreed with her arrogant laugh, then borrowed the magazine on some pretense. She very nearly set the thing on fire when she read the results. The rag of a magazine stated that she, Koizumi Akako, had been friendzoned. FRIENDZONED! It was absolutely unacceptable and she needed to take immediate steps to rectify it.

The question was _how_? Her usual methods had no affect. She had no doubt that the tips the magazine had offered would be useless (as if dressing up to see him would help the most beautiful woman in the world). Akako needed something smart. How could she gain Kaitou KID's heart? How did anyone gain anything from the thief? Wait… Akako began to smile. Why hadn't she thought of it sooner? The best way to control Kaito KID was to control the people he cared about. Kuroba was impervious to her charms, but those he was close to were not.

"Prepare my mirror!" The witch barked at her butler like henchman. She considered her options as she changed into clothing more appropriate for a witch's ritual. Akako knew better than to interfere with the thief's family. She thought it would be more worth her while to focus on those who had _won_ the thief's affection. Friends would serve her purposes just as well, if not better, with less risk of the thief realizing what she was up to. Akako walked into the room and stood before the mirror. She waved her hand, and her lovely refection vanished. There was no sentience in the mirror today. Good, Akako could do without distracting prophecies tonight. "Show me those close to Kaitou KID!" She demanded. "Show me the friends who have crept into his heart and made a home there." The mirror rippled as multiple scenes began to appear on its surface. All of the people Kaitou KID held most dear, and what they were doing at that moment. Akako hurriedly swept aside the image of Aoko (who was cackling over a fish for no apparent reason). Akako knew better than to involve the girl… at first anyway.

Akako frowned at the two remaining images. Was that all? She had thought there would be more, many more. It seemed the magician kept his heart more closely guarded than she had thought. She should not have been surprised to find Hakuba Saguru reflected in the mirror. The blond detective was reading a book in English. It irritated her that someone she had _protected_ Kuroba from had somehow wormed his way into the magician's heart while Akako failed. She doubted Hakuba knew just how much the thief cared about him. Akako tapped her lips thoughtfully. Kuroba would probably become protective if she moved on him too fast. Perhaps she would invite him out, rather than deal with him at school. That way she could get a better idea of their relationship and decide how best to use him against the magician.

Akako turned her gaze to the other image. "Well, well," She raised an eyebrow. "What's this?" A young boy was tugging someone's pant leg and pointing at something on the ground. "I didn't know Kuroba had a brother…" But, no, that wasn't right. Akako had asked for friends, she wasn't interested in family. So who was the little boy with the glasses that looked so much like Kuroba? Wait; was that a body he was looking at so intently? Akako smiled. Well, that was interesting. She almost wished the mirror was possessed so she could ask who the boy was, even if she'd just get a riddle. She would have to ask Aoko if she knew a young boy with glasses. If he was close to Kuroba, Aoko as his childhood friend probably knew him as well. In the meantime…

Akako snapped her fingers at her butler. "Get me a phone." She ordered without looking at him. An old-fashioned phone appeared at her elbow on a silver tray. When Akako picked up the receiver it began to ring. In the mirror, Hakuba glanced up and grabbed the cell phone from the table. He went back to the book as he answered it.

" _Hello?_ " He said in English.

"Hakuba-kun?" Akako smiled in her flirty voice. "It's Koizumi Akako."

"Ah, Koizumi-san," Akako was pleased to see a light blush adorn the detective's cheeks, but annoyed that he did not put down the book. "How may I help you?" Hakuba frowned as something occurred to him. "How did you get my number?"

"Oh ho ho!" Akako laughed, half irritated, half impressed that Hakuba managed to keep enough presence of mind to realize that even when talking to her. "Aoko-chan gave it to me." She lied. "Would you mind meeting me for dinner Saturday? I have a favor I'd like to ask of you. My treat."

"I don't see why not…" Hakuba hesitated. "But a gentleman never lets a lady pay. Seven o'clock? At Hudson's?"

" _It's a date._ " Akako said in broken English. She smirked as Hakuba's face turned brought red and he finally dropped the book.

"R- right." He stuttered.

* * *

Kaito stared at Hakuba in abject horror. "You have a date with Koizumi?" He choked.

"Not a date." Hakuba corrected, with only the lightest blush. "She said she wants to ask me something."

"Why can't she ask you at school?" Kaito demanded.

"I assume she didn't want her admirers to murder me." Hakuba stated dryly. _Probably better that than what she has planned!_ Kaito shuddered. He could not allow that witch to be alone with Hakuba. Since the detective was not going to listen to him if he told him Akako was dangerous. He'd have to find another way to keep them apart and figure out what the witch was up to.

"I thought you were going to be busy with work Saturday." Kaito commented off handedly.

"Nothing that I can't take care of earlier in the day. Unless you have something planned." Hakuba gave him a look.

"Me?" Kaito feigned innocence. "Why would _my_ plans involve you? Or your work?"

"Right…" Hakuba eyed him dubiously. Okay, so it might have been a bit risky to bait the detective like this, but it would make Hakuba think the heist was already planned. He wouldn't think Kaito was trying to keep him away from Akako, so he wouldn't go out of his way to see her to spite the thief. Perhaps more importantly, tidbits like these were the only reason Hakuba talked to him. Kaito had to drop a hint every now and then to keep the detective interested. Kaito put a hand in his pocket and texted Jii-chan to locate a target for Saturday (without removing the phone). Then Kaito engaged the detective in a fierce debate about heist movies. Aoko joined in (on Hakuba's side, arguing against the thieves) and Kaito got chased with a mop after he stole Aoko and Hakuba's bentos to make a point.

* * *

Akako was not surprised when a Kaitou KID heist was announced for the coming Saturday. She had prepared for it. Before the note even arrived, she called Hakuba and rescheduled to Friday evening. No doubt the detective would be clever enough to keep it from the thief now that he suspected he would interfere.

"Changing your target?" The being inside the mirror cackled as she watched Hakuba explain Kaitou KID's riddle to the Taskforce. She gave the mirror a good solid thump. It yelped, as if harming its corporeal form somehow harmed it.

"Be silent and show me the other one dear to Kaitou KID's heart." She demanded. The mirror displayed Aoko, waiting impatiently at a table set for two (it was futile, Akako had just seen Nakamori-keibu at the meeting with Hakuba). "Not her!" Akako snapped, striking the mirror again. The mirror did a decent imitation of a shudder before the image shifted to the elementary school boy playing soccer with friends in a darkening park. The boy was proving to be quite the mystery. Akako had successfully brought up the subject of children while Keiko was complaining about her younger brother. She asked Aoko if she had any siblings. "Aoko wishes." The girl responded. After a bit of probing Akako learned that there weren't any children close to either Aoko or Kaito.

"Who are you?" Akako murmured, reaching out towards the boy. Akako addressed the intelligence in the mirror. "Care to shed any light?" The normally chatty entity was quiet. Akako frowned. That was strange… "What aren't you saying?" The witch inquired. She kept her voice neutral. She wasn't certain whether the being was about to mess with her or… something else. She'd never seen this behavior from it before.

"The boy is unnatural." The mirror finally answered. Akako's frown deepened.

"How so?" She pressed. The mirror shuddered. "What is strange about him?" The mirror was trembling now. If she didn't know better, she'd say it was frightened. For the first time in their long association Akako gave the being its space. "What _can_ you tell me?" Her voice wasn't gentle, but it was the closest she'd ever come.

"He is not a danger to you." The mirror stated in something akin to relief. "He is more than he appears. Something happened to him. Something-" The mirror cut itself off.

"What is wrong?" The witch asked.

"I can't determine what happened to him." The mirror seemed to shiver. "It's as if something is mimicking magic but… it's _wrong_!" The glass cracked and Akako jumped. She stared at the fractured reflection of the boy. "…Sorry." The mirror said sheepishly. The glass mended itself. "The boy is safe, but whatever affected him isn't."

"And you can't tell me who he is?" Akako clarified.

"His identity is related to this… _thing_." The mirror said more freely now that it was clear that its mistress was not going to harm it for its unwillingness to delve deeper.

"I'll just have to find out for myself." Akako murmured. She studied the image of the boy intently, searching for a landmark, a nametag, some clue to who he was.

"Mistress…" The mirror spoke hesitantly. Akako inclined her head to indicate she was listening. "I see no problem with your interest in the boy, but his secret… It's dangerous. Please don't try to uncover it." The mirror pleaded. Akako stared at the mirror, as if trying to look past its surface to the entity. Its concern was… surprising. She considered it.

"I will leave it be, for now." She promised. "But I have to find him first…"

The answer came, surprisingly enough, from Hakuba Saguru. Akako met him at the restaurant wearing a long purple dress that accented the purple shine to her hair and clung to her every curve in a way that made her appear both modest and sensual. She smirked at the jealous glares tossed her way by women showing far more skin for a less seductive result.

"You look lovely." Hakuba complimented her with a light blush. She tilted her head. Most boys would be flushed and stammering at this point. Akako turned to the man seating them.

"Could we have a booth?" She asked in a low voice that sounded more seductive than the words did. The man had the proper response, turning bright red and fumbling with his words. Akako requested that Kimiko serve them. She didn't want to be distracted, male servers were either incompetent or overly attentive around her. Hakuba was her focus today, and Kimiko was the one waitress that she could depend on to be both efficient and mature enough not to spit in her food or try to ruin her dinner.

"So, what did you want to talk about?" Hakuba asked pleasantly as he settled in the booth. Akako had of course prepared a topic.

"I've been doing some research into my family history." She said pleasantly. The witch lifted the leather portfolio case in her hand and opened it. "It seems that I have some roots in England on my paternal grandmother's side." Hakuba raised an eyebrow.

"Really?" Hakuba looked surprised without being insulting. Akako was aware that she was distinctly Japanese in appearance.

"It was a few generations back." Akako smiled. "I've found some documents, but, as you might have noticed, _my English not good_." She switched to her poor English again for that sentence. Hakuba was too much of a gentleman to wince. Akako laughed. "I thought I'd be able to translate it given time." She continued. "But some of the letters are strange… and I don't think I understand the words. I'd hoped that you'd be able to help me, given your time in England." A genuine grin flickered across Hakuba's face. Akako didn't realize it was because she'd referenced his time in Britain as her reason for asking his help, rather than his mixed parentage. He disliked people assuming he was fluent in all things European because his mother was English.

"Certainly." Hakuba said, more warmly than she'd ever heard the analytical detective speak before. "If I may?" He held out his hand. Akako removed a few sheets of aging yellow parchment and offered them to him. Hakuba drew back. Akako blinked.

"Is something wrong?" She asked uncertainly. She'd gone through these papers looking for any specific mention of 'magic', 'witchcraft', or 'enchantment' (three words she'd know in any language). There wasn't anything that she saw. Even if there was, wasn't the detective too logical to realize the significance of the phrases? Surely he'd chalk it up to superstition of the writer, wouldn't he?

"You really ought to have those in plastic." Hakuba eyed them apprehensively. "Judging by the age of the parchment, handling them might make them deteriorate."

"Oh, I see." Akako relaxed. "I didn't realize. I have a lot of old books and papers from my family and I've always just read them." Hakuba pulled a pair of gloves from his pockets, and slipped them on. He offered Akako a pair as he accepted the parchment. Akako frowned but accepted the latex gloves. Who brought gloves to dinner with a beautiful woman? She supposed that he was a detective, so it might just be something he carried with him… Still…

Akako didn't like the appearance of the latex gloves, but she could make anything look good, so she pulled them on. Hakuba was entirely engrossed in the pages. "I'm not surprised you had trouble with these." Hakuba remarked. "They are written in calligraphy. Nice calligraphy too. It would be hard to read for someone who wasn't familiar with it." Hakuba set one of the pages aside gently. "The terminology is also pretty archaic."

"You seem to understand it perfectly well." Akako smiled.

"Archaeology is a hobby." Hakuba replied. "It's a lot like detective work, but without the stress of victims and witnesses." _Without the stress of people you mean._ Akako thought in amusement.

"You are a man of many talents." Akako remarked, leaning her cheek on her hand.

"Thank you." Hakuba replied, habitually. Akako frowned. She hadn't made him lose his train of thought. He was still pouring over those manuscripts like they were more interesting than… _her_!

"Find any clues there?" She asked. Hakuba finally looked up and Akako was triumphant when she saw him blush.

"You seem to be descended from a very powerful woman." He stated. "If these truly belong to your ancestors, I believe that you are related to Barbara Palmer, first Duchess of Cleveland and mistress to the King during the seventeenth century."

"Oh?" Akako was genuinely pleased. She'd known that her ancestors had made it to high places, and that these documents were significant, even if she hadn't know precisely what they held. "Does that mean that I am royalty?"

"That depends on who you ask." Hakuba said easily, with a smile. "You are most certainly descended from nobility. These documents would indicate that you are related to her oldest daughter, Countess Anne Lennard Fitzroy."

"Interesting." Akako smiled coyly, encouraging Hakuba to continue, while becoming confident that the detective wouldn't be reduced to a blundering fool by a mere smile. She was beginning to feel comfortable with his reactions. "So, she wasn't the king's daughter?"

"Officially King Charles the Second claimed her as his daughter, but there is still some debate about that." Hakuba answered. "She probably wasn't in terms of blood… but officially, yes. You are royal."

"Fabulous." Akako purred, and Hakuba fumbled with the sheets.

"Hello, you two." Kimiko walked up to the table and grinned at them. "Can I get you anything to drink?" Hakuba insisted that they put the pages away when the drinks arrived. He handled them gently, as if they were incredibly precious.

"You should have someone come and look through your papers and books." Hakuba told her. "They really should be preserved."

"I'm not sure that I'm comfortable having a stranger go through my heirlooms." Akako said, casually stirring her drink with her straw. She gazed at him slyly. "Perhaps you could do it." Akako murmured, flirtatiously. Hakuba blushed furiously and shook his head quickly. He waved away the offer with his concern that he would damage something. He wasn't trained for that kind of work. Akako smiled. So she could still get to him easily, even if he didn't trip over himself at the snap of her fingers like most boys.

They began to talk. Akako was genuinely surprised at how much she was enjoying herself. Hakuba was quite knowledgeable. They talked about her ancestor. He told her about different elements of social hierarchy in England. She told him a little bit about the magic (or as she phrased it for his benefit "folk beliefs") that she'd heard about from England and how she thought they paralleled ones in Japan. He seemed genuinely interested in her ideas. The food came before Akako remembered that she wanted to talk to him about Kaitou KID.

"I know that you work other cases." Akako said aloud. "But you certainly seem focused on Kaitou KID. That's the only reason you are in Japan."

"It's not the only reason." Hakuba denied. "But it is a big one. I'm quite looking forward to the heist tomorrow."

"Do you think that you'll catch him?" Akako asked, genuinely curious.

"Not tomorrow." Hakuba sighed. "It's too short notice, he's had more time to plan, and we haven't had enough to prepare."

"But you are still looking forward to it." Akako pointed out.

"Of course," Hakuba clasped his hands in front of him. "Every heist has its clues. Every clue gets me closer to understanding him."

"Why do you want to catch him so much?" Akako was genuinely curious. "Is it just the fame? You are pretty well known right now. Not as much as Kudo Shinichi or that Hattori Heiji," Akako paused as Hakuba visibly twitched. "But you are a celebrity in several circles."

"It started out that way." Hakuba said thoughtfully. "The prestige, the challenge, and the doors that catching him would open."

"But now?" Akako prompted him. Hakuba stared thoughtfully over her left shoulder.

"He's an interesting person." Hakuba said. "I want to know what makes him do something he _knows_ is wrong." Hakuba was certain that KID knew that what he did was wrong, even if he enjoyed the thrill. Hakuba smiled. "Besides, even if I seem like a gentleman I'm rather vindictive. I don't enjoy being pranked any more than you do." Akako smirked evilly.

"That's a rather petty reason to want to put someone in prison, isn't it?"

"It really is." Hakuba laughed. "But frankly, something about him doing something that he knows is wrong really bothers me and makes me want him to be punished."

"So it wouldn't bother you as much if he thought he wasn't doing anything wrong?" Akako asked. Hakuba cocked his head and genuinely considered her question.

"You know… I don't think it would. I'd still try to catch him, of course." He added. "But I don't think he would get under my skin the way he does."

"Well, if anyone is going to catch him, it will probably be you." Akako said casually. _Or me._ She mentally added. "You have come the closest to catching him so far."

"I'm afraid not." Hakuba corrected her, looking well and truly embarrassed. "That honor goes to an eight year old boy named Edogawa Conan." Akako blinked.

"I'm sorry, what?" Hakuba grinned.

"It is surprising, I know." He said. "But that boy is really exceptional. It seems that he takes my place at KID's heists whenever I am in England. The papers have even nicknamed him the 'KID Killer', I'd be more insulted if I hadn't met him myself." Akako sat back, her world spinning. Of course, she hadn't been able to find any connection to Kuroba Kaito because the child was important to Kaitou KID! No wonder Aoko had no idea who he was!

"He sounds interesting." Akako leaned toward him with a smile, resting her chin on her hand. "When did you meet him?"

"Let's see," Hakuba laced his fingers together and stared over them pensively. "I first met him during a detective gathering. It was a bit absurd actually. The murderer was trying to frame Kaito KID but the set up was not in line with KID's MO at all. I'm still uncertain as to why they thought _that_ was a good idea." Hakuba shook himself, cutting off his rambling. "Edogawa-kun was there with his guardian, Mouri Kogoro-san." Hakuba laughed. "He's a detective as well, but seemed to be of a… lower caliber than the others there."

"His guardian or the child?" Akako joked. She blinked. That was strange, she never joked. She teased and flirted, but joking was something done with friends…

"His guardian." Hakuba chuckled. "Though it did turn out to be KID in disguise, so it might not be fair to judge." Hakuba straightened, eyes contemplative. "Edogawa Conan, on the other hand, was able to hold his own in terms of deductions and strategic planning with myself and several other accomplished detectives." His eyes weren't looking at anything she could see, more like they were closely examining a memory. "He also realizes his limitations. He'll play up his childishness and point out the obvious to lead people to his deductions."

"You almost sound as if you admire him." Akako commented.

"I do." Hakuba admitted. "It's hard enough to be a _high school_ detective, yet he has worked out a way to be an _elementary school_ detective." He thoughtfully linked his hands together in front of his mouth. "I didn't spend much time with him. But from what I've seen, he's at about my level of intelligence. I can't help but think it must be frustrating for him."

"Frustrating to be smart?" Akako asked flatly. Hakuba chuckled.

"Frustrating that no one realizes just how smart he is." Hakuba amended. "As far as I can tell, the only ones who might treat him as an equal is the high school detective of the West, Hattori Heiji," Something like disgust flickered across his face. "And perhaps Kaitou KID."

"Oh~?" Akako leaned on elbows. "So, how did you meet? At a KID heist?"

"No, now that you mention it." Hakuba tilted his head thoughtfully. "We've actually never both been at a heist. I'm only making my assumptions based on the media coverage and my personal knowledge of KID." Akako leaned back, disappointed. She'd been hoping he could tell her about how Kaitou KID and Conan interacted. "Perhaps Conan will attend tomorrow's heist." Akako considered that. If he was there she could go to meet him and also interact a bit more with Hakuba. No doubt Hakuba would arrange for her attendance and introduce them. However, if KID saw her with the child it would put his guard up. She already had to worry about him interfering with her observations of (and intentions with) Hakuba. It would be best to ensure that Kaito was unaware of her interest in the boy as well.

"Curious. He sounds like an unusual boy." She smiled at Hakuba. "Rather like you were I imagine. Solving mysteries and getting into trouble." Hakuba laughed again and began to tell a story about one of his earliest cases; how, at age 5, he'd thought he'd stumbled on a murder but had only wound up discovering who what stealing the cook's jam. Akako listened with amusement, occasionally taking a bite of her food, and making a few sardonic comments as Hakuba told his tale. Their conversation moved from there to places they'd traveled, their classmates (Akako was surprised that Hakuba made deductions about some of her favorite followers that she herself hadn't been aware of), and back to Barbara Palmer, her notorious ancestor.

It was only when Kimiko brought their dessert that Akako realized she liked spending time with Hakuba. She'd been having fun talking to a boy who wasn't completely enamored with her… It was strange but somewhat nice. It didn't do any harm to her or her goal. After all, it seemed like he'd been enjoying himself too. She sensed that compelling Hakuba to feel something for her would only put him on guard, even if it worked. Hakuba would be more likely to agree to do something like this again if he felt natural around her. Akako nodded slightly, satisfied as she took a bite of strawberry cheesecake.

* * *

"Jii-chan, it doesn't have to be anything spectacular. It's not like I'm trying to impress anyone." Kaito rolled his eyes. "It's just Hakuba." He tilted his chair back on two legs, resting his head back on his interlaced hands and closed his eyes. The old man smiled indulgently at his young charge.

"Yes, but if you _can_ impress him, don't you think you should? It'll be hard to set the trick up. But you did say that he had to think that you'd been planning it for a while." Jii-chan pressed. He wasn't sure why Kaito wanted to throw a heist on such short notice, but he knew it had to be important. Besides, the boy was brooding; something that never fared well for anyone. Better to keep him busy and get his mind off whatever was bothering him.

Kaito opened one eye and peered up at Jii-chan. He had a point. Why shouldn't he blow Hakuba's mind? If he made his heist interesting enough, surely the British detective would be too absorbed in paperwork and working out the trick to give Akako any thought. "Alright," Kaito let the chair fall on all four legs with a clatter. "What did you have in mind, Jii-chan?"

As Kaito went over the plans for the heist, making improvements to Jii-chan's overall scheme, he had no inkling that it was already too late. Hakuba Saguru was at that moment bidding Koizumi Akako good night. Kaito remained blissfully unaware, wrapped up in the preparations for his heist, that Akako's plans were already in motion. Worse, he had no idea that it wasn't just one of his detectives the witch was after… It was both.

* * *

 **Author's Notes**

 **In case you were wondering, Jii-chan didn't show up because Kaito considers him family, and Akako was only interested in friends.**

 **By the way, the title is a play on the words. Making Plans, as in plotting evilly, or Making Plans as in making plans with Hakuba.**

 **More on the way. Please comment. Seriously, I love this fiction.**


	2. Heists and Prophecies

Kaito chuckled to himself as he spotted Hakuba through his binoculars. Excellent. He'd kept his detective out of Akako's well-manicured clutches. Sure, he'd have to think of a longer-term plan for keeping them apart, but, for now, Hakuba was safe and they had their roles to play as thief and detective. Kaito sighed contentedly as he lowered his binoculars and began his safety check. He'd already gone over the equipment for the larger trick. Now he checked over his personal equipment. Hang glider, the fabric was checked for tears and every clasp and pole was tightened and secured. Card gun, he took it apart and put it back together. Kaito sighed. Now for the hard part. He picked up his binoculars and began surveying the area for people who (unlike Hakuba) did not want to be seen. Kaito had accepted snipers as an occupational hazard (and he would continue to accept them as long as they remained focused on him and not others) but he preferred _knowing_ that they were there, if at all possible.

Tonight seemed decidedly sniper free, Kaito noted happily. All the better, no need to worry about Nakamori or Hakuba- or _Tantei-kun?!_ Kaito's stunned eyes landed on the familiar child walking beside two teenage girls. He'd been so absorbed in planning a heist and (discreetly) keeping Hakuba away from Akako he'd completely forgotten that his loyal fan Sonoko would drag his favorite little critic along. It was a Saturday evening after all! Kaito stood abruptly, binoculars still glued on the boy. His plan hadn't been designed with _two_ detectives in mind, but he didn't want to gas the tiny tantei. Heists were the only place they got to hang out. He didn't want to miss this chance by knocking Conan out, or worse give Ran a reason to think that his heists were anything less than safe. (He still regret that incident with the taser and was eternally grateful to Sonoko for convincing Ran it was a one time thing, or Conan would have been kept from every one of his heists.)

At the same time, he didn't want to risk Conan and Hakuba collaborating, not on this thrown together heist… Kaito lowered his binoculars and ruffled his hair in frustration. Conan wasn't at the heist location yet. Kaito could handle them as long as they didn't get the chance to talk before hand. Hakuba tried to prevent Kaito from stealing, so all of their interactions were earlier in the heist, and then Kaito trapped him or slowed him down. Tantei-kun was his favorite because he liked to watch his magic and figure out how the trick worked. Their confrontations always took place after the heist.

Alright. Kaito made his decision. He'd start the heist early. It would annoy Hakuba and Conan would miss some tricks, but it would let him take time for both of his detectives. Kaito flicked his cape once and the white turned to black (one of the most basic tricks there was). Then he threw his black covering over his white suit. He leapt from the building, virtually invisible against the dark sky. He had to get the show started before Conan arrived. "Jii-chan! We need to start early! How close are you to the roof?" He hissed.

Kaitou KID appeared on the roof of the museum. "Ladies and Gentlemen!" Kaito's voice echoed through the audience thanks to the speakers they had planted. "Welcome to tonight's show!" Kaitou KID dropped a smoke bomb and appeared in the center of the crowd. Kaito's entrance might have been a bit hurried. He was sure that Hakuba noticed him straighten his jacket as the smoke cleared.

"Kaitou KID!" Nakamori roared.

"Nakamori-keibu." KID greeted him warmly and turned to Hakuba. "Tantei-san." Hakuba's eyes narrowed.

"KID." He muttered. "You're 2 minutes 58 seconds and 7 milliseconds early."

"Ah yes, sorry about that." KID apologized like the gentleman he was. "I know how," _anal_ , he thought, but didn't say. "Precise, you can be with time."

"I know that you know." Hakuba commented. "And you've always respected it. So I have to wonder. What's different about today?" KID laughed. It sounded natural but it was actually uncomfortable. He wasn't about to tell Hakuba that they had an unexpected guest.

"Well, I just wanted to make sure you had the best seat to observe today's heist." KID's monocle gleamed. Hakuba stepped back warily, only to yelp in surprise as a lasso descended around him and yanked him into the air. "I put a lot of work into tonight's heist, and I want to make sure you appreciate every second of it." KID gloated as the rope dragged him to an awning which automatically wrapped itself around him so that all that could be seen of the detective was his head. His eyes glared down at the thief. "I hope you enjoy this follow up of a classic!" KID called with a deep bow.

The taskforce jumped at him. KID grinned and raised one finger, then vanished in another poof of smoke. Laughter echoed through out the crowd as KID appeared on the roof of another building. Before the taskforce could mobilize he vanished and appeared in the window of the museum. KID began vanishing and reappearing around the museum, followed by taskforce members and fans alike. The taskforce was in such a tizzy chasing the teleporting thief that only two task members were left guarding the jewel. Kaito was able to sneak past them without anyone noticing and pilfered the stone. The taskforce chased KID again. Then he teleported outside. And the taskforce followed him there too.

Meanwhile, Kaito went up to the roof. He spotted someone trying to help Hakuba down with a ladder. The British detective looked immensely unamused. _It's for his own good._ Kaito thought fondly watching him. Kaito was broken from his observation by a familiar sound. He ducked, and a soccer ball went whizzing over his head.

"What the hell was that?" A dry young voice inquired. Kaito turned, sweating slightly.

"Tantei-kun," He beamed. Sparks flew from the boy's shoes. Conan's eyes narrowed.

"Care to explain why you started early?" He demanded. He released another soccer ball and grinned sadistically as Kaito flinched. He began juggling it between his feet and head.

"You know me." Kaito's eyes followed the ball nervously. "I have to stay unpredictable." Conan trapped the ball under one foot.

"Pretty easy trick today." He said conversationally. "Impressive to those who don't figure it out but simple."

"Oh~?" Kaito raised an eyebrow.

"You and your partner worked together." He smiled predatorily. "Your partner appeared in one place, and you ran to the next location where KID would 'teleport' to. Then your partner disguised as a taskforce member or a fan under a smoke screen, and at the same moment you'd drop a smoke bomb and emerge as KID, distracting the taskforce long enough for your partner to reach the new location and start again." Conan tilted his head thoughtfully. "It's actually impressive that you and your partner were in sync together as well as you were."

"We had to be perfect with Tantei-san watching." KID smiled. "Were you impressed with what I did to him?"

"Why would I be impressed with you humiliating a fellow detective?" Conan rolled his eyes, but his twitching mouth gave him away. KID inwardly cheered. "Shall we get on with it then?" Conan rolled the ball under his foot smirking.

"What? But you didn't tell me what you thought of-" Kaito began, but cut himself off as he dodged the soccer ball Conan launched at him. "Hey! You can't just-!" He tried again. But was interrupted once more when one end of Conan's bungee cord suspenders settled around KID (much as the lasso had wrapped around Hakuba earlier) and KID looked up. Conan grinned at him, standing between the thief and the AC unit that the other end of the suspender was attached to, and pressed a button. KID yelped as he was yanked forward. Apparently he moved faster than Conan had expected, because he barreled straight into the wide-eyed boy.

KID was up in an instant, setting Conan on his feet and patting him down for injuries. Then he leapt onto the rail (thoroughly assured that Conan was alright). "Well, Tantei-kun, it appears that we are finished for tonight." KID's voice was laced with genuine regret. He wished he could have kept playing with the little detective. Conan scowled up at him. KID fell purposefully off the roof and opened his glider. So he didn't see Conan grin, glancing at the jewel in his small hand. And he didn't realize that Conan had planned that whole business with the suspenders until he found the gem missing and realized Conan had picked his pocket.

Kaito groaned. He hadn't had a chance to check it for Pandora! _Damn detectives…_ He thought.

* * *

 _When the sun's high and young hunters abound…_

 _In a place where the sky meets the ground…_

 _If the witch can remember all she will see…_

 _Then she will become an invaluable key…_

Akako glared at the mirror. "Have you been taking lessons from Kaitou KID?" She snarled. The mirror giggled.

"Now, now, Akako-sama." It tittered. Akako almost missed it being afraid. "You _know_ I can't give you straight answers. Not about the future." Akako gave a sigh that was half anger and half resignation. She had asked the being in the mirror the best way to meet Conan, and it presented her with a riddle. She had been struggling with it since she received it the day after KID's heist.

It wasn't until she was sitting in class on Thursday that she realized what she should have done days ago. Akako wrote down the first two lines of the riddle, since those seemed to pertain to a time and place, and walked over to Hakuba. Kaito noticeably stiffened a few seats away and Akako knew that she had only moments before the magician used a prank as an excuse to get the detective away from her. It was actually becoming quite tiresome. Hakuba's mild resistance to her charm meant that he could actually hold a conversation and, to her surprise, she enjoyed talking to him. He was a very interesting conversationalist. Akako wished that it was easier for them to interact during school but between her admirers and Kaito's overprotective tendencies it was difficult.

"Koizumi-san," Hakuba greeted her warmly. Akako felt a twinge of satisfaction as Kaito's glare sharpened. Hakuba _never_ greeted him as affectionately. "Are you enjoying the book?"

"Very much, thank you." She smiled. She had mentioned trouble finding information on Barbara Palmer when she called him with another question on the old document. The next day Hakuba had given her one of the only books about English aristocracy written in Japanese. It had an entire chapter on the infamous Barbara Palmer. "I am finding Anne Boleyn particularly fascinating. Do you think Henry the Eighth had grounds to behead her?"

"I don't think that there are _ever_ grounds to behead someone." Hakuba snorted. "But if you're asking if I think she was guilty, I'd have to say no." Hakuba huffed in irritation. "She didn't have a son and he wanted to be rid of her. I mean, did you _see_ that evidence?" Hakuba seemed to be gearing up for a longer conversation. Akako could tell that Kaito was weighing the pros and cons of interrupting them.

"I'll reread it later." Akako assured him. She was actually interested in Hakuba's take on the case. "I was wondering if you could help me out with this." She placed the paper with the two lines written on it before him. Hakuba read the lines and shot a suspicious look over at Kaito. He blinked in confusion.

"Where did you get this?" He inquired, reading it over again. Akako shrugged.

"It was part of a scavenger hunt." She answered. "A child on my street asked for help with it." She grinned. "Surely a child's scavenger hunt doesn't trouble the great detective." She teased. Hakuba laughed slightly.

"It shouldn't be. Let's see-"

"Whatcha got there?" Kaito snatched the paper off his desk and danced backwards.

"Kuroba," Hakuba gave a long suffering sigh. The sadistic side of Akako wanted to laugh at how little the detective seemed to care about the thief who was so fond of him. "Do you mind harassing someone else for a few minutes?"

"What is this?" Kaito frowned. "Seems too boring to be a KID note." He shot a suspicious glare at Akako. She crossed her arms.

"Class is starting, back to your seats." The teacher ordered. Akako and Kaito didn't move. Hakuba glanced between them, perplexed. "Now!" The teacher snapped.

"I'll go if she does." Kaito retorted. Well, that didn't give Akako much choice. With an elegant scoff she went back to her desk. After a moment Kaito did the same, taking the riddle with him.

Akako kept her eye on Hakuba and Kaito throughout the lesson. Kaito was definitely eyeing her. Hakuba was keying the occasional search into his phone, a thoughtful version of his usual sharp detective's gaze passed over his features. She smiled, making about half the boys in the room swoon, and turned back to the board. She should have thought of using the detective to help her decipher prophecies ages ago.

At break, Hakuba started toward Akako, only to be waylaid by the ever protective Kaito. Before Hakuba had taken his first step he realized his shoelaces were tied together. He sighed and set to work untying the knot. Kaito had picked a complicated one, so it took about a minute for the detective to untangle it. From the expression that Akako saw flit across Kaito's face, it had been intended to hold him for much longer.

Hakuba stood and straightened his jacket… which was instantly replaced with a clown jumpsuit. Akako had to wonder how on Earth Kaito had applied the smiling clown make up that matched the frizzy rainbow wig in the short time that the detective was covered in smoke. This time Kaito's constant pranking worked against him. Hakuba was far too accustomed to random clothing changes to let a humiliating outfit deter him. He walked towards Akako. She waved lazily at her admirers who reluctantly cleared a path for the clown detective. Hakuba stood in front of Akako, opened his mouth, and smoke exploded around him. When it cleared, Kaito was standing in Hakuba's place, glowering down at Akako.

"Stop it!" He snapped. Akako smiled.

"Stop what?" She asked innocently. Kaito's eyes narrowed. Akako's admirers shifted around her, torn between their desire to defend their idol and their fear of angering the class prank master. Kaito turned on his heel and stalked away. Akako's eyes followed him with amusement. He thought she was bewitching Hakuba. It seemed that Kaito didn't believe that Hakuba would enjoy her company otherwise. She inwardly cackled as she pictured his jealousy if he knew that Akako hadn't _needed_ to use sorcery to make him like her. Still, she glanced around uneasily. An unfamiliar prickle of concern tugged at her. Where had Hakuba gone? Her question was answered when Hakuba stumbled in over his too large clown shoes right as class was about to start.

He shot a dirty look at Kaito and an apologetic one at Akako as he returned to his seat. Kaito maintained his meaningless smile. But right before lunch, Akako and Hakuba's next chance to speak, Hakuba began sneezing uncontrollably. Students worried about colds leaned away from him. The teacher paused in her lecture.

"Perhaps you should go to the infirmary, Hakuba-kun." She suggested gently. Kaito shot a triumphant glance Akako's way and fury sparked in the witch. It was time to teach the magician a lesson.

"I'll take him to the infirmary." She volunteered, standing up. Kaito froze.

"Would you? Thank you, Koizumi-san." The teacher nodded, Kaito half rose from his chair as Akako led the still violently sneezing Hakuba from the room. Akako spotted Aoko producing a mop. A small smile touched her face. Excellent, she would keep him busy for a while.

Akako thought that Hakuba might have been cursing in English. Between sneezes and foreign sounding words Akako was sure she heard "Kuroba" and "sneezing powder". When they got to the infirmary Akako sat Hakuba down on the bed and began to search her pockets. She removed a few herbs from one of her charms and snatched a flower that was growing just outside the window. She crushed the herbs and the flower in her hand. Akako murmured a few words over the mixture and snapped her fingers, the plants began to smolder and smoke. She held them in front of Hakuba.

"Breath in through your nose." She instructed, holding the mixture in front of his face. Hakuba obeyed and stopped sneezing almost immediately. He blinked and Akako pulled the leafy concoction away.

"What was that?" Hakuba stared at Akako curiously.

"Just an old family remedy." Akako answered him. "A few herbs to clear air passageways." Hakuba's expression was appraising; a friendlier version of his detective glare.

"And you just carry these herbs around?" He asked inquisitively.

"I improvised." She smiled mysteriously. "But I don't think we have much time until Kuroba arrives." A grimace passed over the detective's face.

"Yes, it's particular." Hakuba mused. "I always thought Kuroba's romantic interest was held solely by Aoko-kun, but his determination to keep us apart seems to suggest otherwise." Hakuba smirked at Akako. "How does it feel to have caught Kuroba in your spell?"

 _I wouldn't know._ Akako thought it with a flash of anger. It must have shown because Hakuba drew back, looking alarmed and confused, pulling behind his polite façade. Akako blinked at him. His smile had returned, but it was the same pompous one he offered everyone. It didn't have the openness that Akako had come to expect during their interactions in the short time since their dinner together.

"Hakuba-kun?" She stated questioningly.

"Right, you wanted to know about the riddle." He said, all business. Akako frowned. What had happened?

Akako had no way of knowing that Hakuba thought he'd offended her. It seemed that they weren't at the friendly teasing stage of their friendship yet. He'd overstepped and now he was retreating. He didn't realize that it was specifically the mention of Kaito that had irritated her, not the teasing. Hakuba handed Akako his phone. "The riddle is referring to the Mirror Lake Bug Hunt this Saturday." Akako looked at the screen, momentarily distracted from the abrupt regression in their relationship. "The Bug Hunt starts at noon. It's a children's event during the Mirror Lake Wilderness Festival."

" _Young hunters abound_." Akako smiled. "But what about ' _where the sky meets the ground_ '?"

"Mirror Lake is so reflective it is hard to see where the sky ends and the lake begins." Hakuba tapped a photo, enlarging it on the phone. It looked as if the sky was truly touching the shore rather than water.

"Fantastic." Akako returned the phone. "You really are a great detective."

"My pleasure." Hakuba assured her with a faint smile and a slight bow. Akako drew back. Right, Hakuba's strange reversion to the way things were before the dinner. She didn't like it.

"Do you want to have lunch Sunday?" She asked impulsively. Hakuba blinked, clearly startled.

"I, should be free." Hakuba said, with a slight hesitation. "Did you want me to look at something else?"

"No," Akako shook her head. "I was hoping to continue our conversation about Anne Boleyn."

"Oh," Hakuba looked surprised but pleased. "Yes, I'd rather enjoy that."

"Great, Sunday at Hudson's?" She smiled her smile that made men trip over their own feet.

"At twelve thirty?" Hakuba smiled back, wholly unaffected. Akako nodded just as Kaito burst in sporting a new band-aid on his nose and bits of mop fiber in his hair.

"You were gone so I got stuck being your partner on the next class project, HakuBastard." He snapped, shoving his way between them. Hakuba glared at him suspiciously.

"Why didn't you just partner with Aoko-kun?" Hakuba demanded coldly. "Koizumi-san and I could have been partners."

"Aoko wanted to work with Koizumi." Kaito replied curtly. Akako was sure that he was lying or had at least manipulated Aoko into requesting her as a partner. It must have been galling to him to give one of them to her, even temporarily. She smiled at him sadistically. His scowl deepened. "She's waiting for you to pick a topic." He growled pointedly. Akako smirked. She glanced at Hakuba.

"As you can see, your deduction wasn't quite accurate." She commented. Kaito might tease someone he liked, but he wouldn't be this downright hostile.

"It would appear so…" Hakuba muttered, a faint shadow of confusion tingeing his scowl as he stared at Kaito. No doubt he was trying to work out why Kaito was so determined to keep them apart. Kaito turned his glare on Hakuba.

"We have to pick a topic too." He snapped. Hakuba raised an eyebrow. Kaito was more interested in getting rid of Akako than what he'd been saying about him.

"I'll get out of your way then." Akako said cordially. "And thank you for your help." She cast a last glance at Kaito and smirked at him. "Maybe next time we can be partners, Hakuba-kun." A look of horror and fury was quickly replaced with a glower. Kaito wasn't even trying to hide behind the smile.

"I'd like that." Hakuba nodded. Kaito's head whipped towards him and Akako laughed. Then she left smiling to herself. Who would have thought it would be so fun to play with Kuroba Kaito's heart?

Kaito didn't know what that witch wanted with _his_ detective but he was going to make sure she didn't get it. He was going to suggest the most complicated topic he could think of and hog all of Hakuba's time working on the project! Though he really would have liked to do a project comparing Ishikawa Goemon and Robin Hood, which would have been an interesting mix of legendary English and Japanese thieves, he knew Hakuba would never agree to it. It didn't stop Kaito from suggesting it, and arguing vehemently in its favor. Kaito himself flatly refused any topics involving Joseph Bell (the inspiration for Sherlock Holmes). Kaito was privately pleased that they argued on the topic long enough to take up a full day. Less free time for the detective meant less time for Akako to… do whatever she was doing.

Friday, Hakuba was, unsurprisingly, irritated with him. They still hadn't picked a topic, and Kaito was making an effort to prank him every time he so much as glanced in Akako's direction. Kaito had just settled down from Aoko's latest mop assault on behalf of the poor pranked Hakuba, when a small violin riff went off on his phone. It was his alert for whenever an article was posted about Sleeping Kogoro or Edogawa Conan. Kaito whipped out his phone. He liked reading about his tiny tantei's exploits. It was hard for him not to brag every time Conan appeared in the newspaper or Sleeping Kogoro broke a case (that Kaito _knew_ Conan was responsible for solving).

Aoko leaned over his shoulder. "What's that kid up to now?" She asked eagerly, in a low voice. She liked to tease him for being a fan of the 'KID Killer' as well as Kaitou KID, but under Kaito's influence she had become as big a fan as he was. Kaito was a bit paranoid about Hakuba finding out, so he had to manipulate her into keeping their (more importantly, _his_ ) admiration for Conan under wraps so 'they wouldn't make Hakuba-kun jealous'.

"He managed to save a kidnapped little girl." Kaito speed read the article. He opened a comment on the page.

 **kidzrule:** _The boy detective does it again!_

Kaito grinned as he tucked away the phone. Supporting Conan always made him happy. The kid didn't get nearly enough recognition. Kaito really wished that he could see Conan on a regular basis. But there were just too many complications. Conan would work out his identity as easily as Hakuba had. Then he would almost certainly find evidence against Kaito, since the child was a bit less scrupulous about collecting proof than the British detective.

Kaito turned back to said blond detective and felt a flare of irritation when he saw him making his way over to Akako _again_. What? Did she take an extra shot of love potion in her coffee this week?! Kaito snapped his fingers and Hakuba crashed to the floor, taking a desk with him. He looked down and found a rope lassoed around his legs. The other end of the rope was held by the surprised, but delighted, president of the Hakuba Saguru fan club. Kaito cackled as she started to drag the British detective away, only to be jumped by her vice president. Perfect. Hakuba should have one hell of a time breaking up that little catfight. Kaito felt the back of his neck prickle and glanced up at Akako. She was glaring at him. Good. He narrowed his eyes and glared right back. Seriously, he had to figure out a way to make it clear that Hakuba was off limits, without making her even more interested.

Kaito heard another alert on his phone and he pulled it out. Someone had replied to his comment.

 **DetectiveFan:** _You again? Seriously, stop encouraging this. Clearly Mouri-sama is the brains._

Kaito scowled. Ugh, DetectiveFan was always claiming that Conan was just a silly little boy who called Mouri for help. Kaito geared up for a flame war.

 **HeinseiTeen4869:** _Don't let him get to you, kidzrule, you guys always do this in the comments._

Kaito smirked. HeinseiTeen was always trying to stop their arguments and get them to focus on the deductions and mysteries rather than the detectives.

 **kidzrule:** _No can do, HT. My fav detective's honor has been insulted and I must defend him._

 **kidzrule:** _Now read carefully, DetectiveFan (of fakes)…_

Kaito began his usual diatribe against DetectiveFan and Mouri, while espousing Conan's brilliance, all the while keeping one eye on the increasingly frenzied fight that Hakuba was trying to get in the middle of. Kaito idly wondered if Hakuba realized that the girls weren't actually fighting anymore, they'd reached an unspoken agreement to keep pretending they were so that they had an excuse to tear at the detective's uniform.

* * *

Akako walked down the trail, putting models in hiking magazines to shame with how well she was wearing a padded green vest, dark brown shirt and form fitting jeans tucked into calf high hiking boots. She'd arrived early to take the lay of the land. There were dozens of hiking groups, many of them were inviting her. Akako declined or ignored them. It was a lovely day. The sun was hidden by clouds just enough to keep it from being too bright, but with the promise that the clouds would burn off by the time the bug hunt began. Akako kept an eye out for Conan or the children that she often saw with him while she was observing him. In all honesty, she was a bit nervous about this. She didn't have much experience with children. Even when she'd been a child, Akako hadn't interacted with other kids. She was trained in the red arts at home until middle school when she was permitted to attend school to practice what she'd learned.

Akako passed a pair of hikers. One of them, in a blue sweater, was showing the other one some fennel and explaining how he could chew it during a hike. "It's like a snack I can just grab beside the path." The man in the blue sweater explained with a grin. The other man, wearing glasses, tasted it.

"Reminds me of licorice." He commented with a grin. Akako rolled her eyes. She could tell them much more about herbs if she were so inclined. She walked by them, only to be stopped by yet another group of hikers who wanted her to join them. Clearly she would have to go on a hike by herself if only to avoid everyone until the boy arrived.

Akako chose a trail rather arbitrarily. There were people everywhere. She didn't really like it. Usually when she was out in nature it was gathering herbs and she welcomed the solitude. Noisy hikers had scattered the wildlife. Akako looked out over the lake as she reached a crest of a hill. Her lip curled, even the water was disturbed. Boats floated on the mirror surface, making it choppy, swimmers splashed near the shore despite the cool morning. Akako scoffed and turned her back on the view.

Akako continued for a little while longer, meandering on the path. She idly wondered what Hakuba would think of the hike. She should invite him on one when there were less people. Akako felt the sun on her face and glanced up. The cloud cover was dissipating. She grimaced. She didn't like it. She was sure to burn. Akako sighed. The trail was a loop so it was faster to finish the hike then turn back now. She glanced around and made eye contact with a girl who flushed and looked away. Akako smiled, her eyes on the girl's floppy hat and the obvious blush on her cheeks.

Five minutes, and several thinly veiled innuendos later, Akako had a new hat. The best part was that the girl was still in denial so she wasn't expecting Akako to call her or anything. Akako loved closeted lesbians. They were adorable. Akako adjusted her new hat. Much better.

It was just about time for the bug hunt when Akako exited the trail. She made her way in that direction. Kids were swarming _everywhere_. Akako had to pull up sharply every time one of them cut her off, shrieking and laughing. Akako was not happy. Where was this detective brat? She cast her gaze over the grassy field. Children ran from their parents, played with each other, gathered in groups to strategize, or ate outdoors snacks packed by their parents. Where was-?

Akako's thought was cut off by a scream. Her eyes settled on the small figure suddenly sprinting in the direction of the sound. Her lips curved into a smile. _There he is…_

* * *

 **Well, some much awaited Conan, and a lot of Hakuba~Kaito friendship moments. I think I succeeded at getting a little bit of insight into Conan and Hakuba's different methods, or rather the core of their different methods, at dealing with KID in this heist. Do you agree?**

 **For the record, I seriously debated that whole hat thing where Akako basically takes a woman's hat by flirting with her. In the end I decided to keep it for reasons, and also remember this is just Akako, not me. (I'm also still debating certain things about Akako. For much later in the story... like... the second or third sequel.)**

 **Orika~ Glad you are liking the story. You did just give me an idea, but I already have a pretty good idea where I am going with this for Akako and Conan. I have zero clue why my name doesn't show up... O_o I have a lot of trouble with this site, so I only started using it recently... I'll try to look into it. I am _still_ debating Akako's reaction to Conan in  the Trouble with Soulmarks. I've come up with like 5 possible scenarios and I can't pick one. **

**Kameo1~ Thanks so much! I _love_ writing this ****fic, and I think that shows in the story.**

 **allietheepic7~ I think that I've successfully written something that shippers can dig their teeth into but keep it platonic. I hope so anyway... I think the next chapter will start to feature stuff you haven't seen yet. ^_^' I'll try to get it up next Monday, but life is crazy so we'll see.**

 **Happy Fourth of July!**

 **Please review~**


	3. Deductions of a Child

**I love writing this one... I just don't have much time.**

 **Plus, I got a little block during some of the interactions, but I think they will get better in time... I think I made Akako too good with children.**

* * *

Akako made her way over to the growing crowd at a leisurely pace. It was probably a purse snatching or someone broke their leg or something.

"Everyone stay back!" A young voice commanded with more authority than someone his age should have. "Does anyone know this man?" One or two people timidly stepped forward. Akako peered around the heads of the others and blinked. Not a minor crime. The body that lay on the grass was clearly dead. And if the child who exuded an intense aura of confidence and determination was any indication, it was murder. Akako smiled lightly. Well, this was interesting.

The child secured the area, directing his friends, who were acting with more self-assurance than the adults around them. Akako watched him pick out the people who'd known the victim as easily as she picked out a love potion from a row of poisons. By the time the police arrived, and the crowd began to disperse, Conan appeared to have gotten most of the story out of the witnesses. Akako's eyes widened ever so slightly when she recognized the body. It was the man with glasses. Her eyes went to Conan who was talking to the man in the blue sweater. The girl she'd obtained her hat from was behind him, fidgeting nervously, while another woman comforted her.

Akako waited with the rest of the crowd until the police arrived. Most of them dispersed when the officers began inspecting the area, but it seemed that Conan had done most of the groundwork for them. They were interviewing the suspects witnesses while Conan's sharp eyes took in everything. Akako moved closer. From what she gathered, the man in glasses, Ishiwa-san, had eaten hemlock in front of his coworkers Imoto-san and Hachi-san (whom had insisted Akako call her 'Aya-chan' when she'd given the witch her hat) in addition to at least five other witnesses. Hibiki-san, the man in the blue sweater, had left to refill everyone's water bottles and only arrived after Ishiwa-san collapsed. It seemed like suicide… very public suicide.

While the other children were talking to one of the officers, Conan broke off from the group. He walked a few meters away, his hand gripping his chin while he thought with the kind of intensity that she'd only ever seen on Hakuba or Kuroba's face a scant number of times. After a moment the little girl with light hair followed him. Akako made her way swiftly towards them. She stopped just far enough to avoid notice among the unrelated people wandering around, and close enough that she could hear the children.

"Having trouble?" The brown haired girl asked. Conan glanced up at her.

"A bit." He commented distractedly. "Ishiwa-san doesn't sound like the type to commit suicide."

"There isn't exactly a type." The girl said flatly. Conan shot her what seemed like an apologetic look.

"Yeah, but he did put his own life above others. If Imoto-san's story about the lawsuit is to be believed." Conan continued. Akako had no idea what they were talking about, but it must have been related to Conan questioning the suspects. "And if it was intentional, why would he commit it like that?" He was frowning at nothing in particular. "In public, with children everywhere, it just doesn't make sense."

Something occurred to Akako, and it was the perfect way to introduce herself. "Boy," She closed the distance between them as Conan looked up. He blushed lightly, but adopted a more child-like face than he'd been wearing before. "Sorry to interrupt your deductions, but did you say that it was _hemlock_ that killed him?" She tilted her head towards the body.

"Y- yeah," Conan nodded, looking like he felt slightly guilty about letting that slip. The brown haired girl was eyeing Akako with neutral dislike. Akako ignored her. She wasn't important.

"Well then, couldn't it have been an accident?" Akako asked. Conan raised an eyebrow.

"It's pretty dangerous to eat something if you don't know what it is, nee-chan." The boy pointed out. "I'm a kid and even I know not to eat random plants."

"Yes, but what if he thought he knew what it was?" Akako glanced around, and spotted a bush near them. "Let me show you." She beckoned him. Conan followed her and the brown haired girl trailed behind.

Akako pulled a green-stemmed plant down to Conan's level. "I saw Hibiki-san showing Ishiwa-san this herb." She pulled off a sprig and put it in her mouth.

"Ah!" Conan protested in alarm. Akako smiled reassuringly.

"It's fennel." She removed another sprig and offered it to Conan. "Smell it," Conan complied. "I think some hikers like to snack on it while they walk. It's everywhere here." Conan looked around and saw that it was all over the place. "But, as you no doubt noticed, from that worried face you gave me when I ate some, fennel has a look alike plant." She pulled a glove on one hand before she turned and reached more deeply into the bushes. "Poison hemlock." Akako plucked a stalk and drew back, her hair catching on some of the branches. She presented it to Conan, who studied it thoughtfully.

"So you think that Ishiwa-san mixed them up and ate hemlock thinking it was fennel?" The girl asked, she crossed her arms and looked up at the witch calculatingly. "I suppose that it's logical… certainly makes more sense than him poisoning himself in front of a bunch of witnesses."

"No…" Conan said slowly. "Nee-chan, did Hibiki-san _warn_ Ishiwa-san about the hemlock?" Akako frowned. Conan was questioning her? That didn't happen much. Though the boy seemed to be too immersed in his own thoughts to be paying much attention to her. She tried not to be insulted.

"No, I don't think so." Akako replied.

"Well, isn't that weird?" Conan led them through his thought process. "It looks like there's hemlock growing right next to fennel there, so wouldn't it make sense to warn him?" Akako stared at him.

"You think Hibiki-san set him up to die?" Akako asked. She smirked. "Interesting, but I don't think even the great Sherlock Holmes could prove it." Conan looked at her with a sharp grin.

"Watch me."

Conan led the way back to the group. Akako followed him, amused. It would be truly interesting to watch the young detective who had impressed Hakuba. She wondered for a moment if she should call the high school detective, but it was better to see what Conan was capable of herself.

Conan scurried around the crime scene when he bumped hard into Hibiki-san and knocked the bag that he had been rummaging through for water right out of his hands. Akako tensed. There might have been no reason to believe that Conan was right about Hibiki, but she wasn't comfortable with a potential killer getting too close to the boy who might help her win Kuroba Kaito's heart. Hibiki-san knelt down to collect the contents of his bag while Conan scrambled to do the same.

"I'm so sorry, niichan!" Conan picked up a book and opened it. "A-le-le," He cried out exaggeratedly. "Niichan, you have a bookmark for hemlock here!" Akako felt, more than saw, any change in Hibiki-san. A darker aura that tasted of fear and some anger spiked around him, it dissipated pretty quickly, but did not fade entirely.

"That's right, boy." Hibiki-san laughed, Akako knew it had to be forced. "I like to research places before I visit them. And everything I read said so much scary stuff about hemlock I thought I should remember what it looked like before I came."

"I see." Conan said childishly. "Then did you tell your friends about it when you got here?"

"I didn't think any of them would be silly enough to eat any plants." Hibiki-san shook his head sadly.

"How strange." Conan murmured. The conversation had gotten the attention of the officers. One of them, a very pretty woman with a surprisingly strong aura, took the book from Conan and started flipping through it, much to Hibiki-san's discomfort. It seemed that she took Conan's 'childish' observations seriously.

To Akako's surprise, Conan turned away from Hibiki-san. Instead, he began to innocently engage Hachi Aya, who had so kindly given Akako her hat, in conversation. After a comment or two designed to put her at ease, Conan grinned up at her. "Onee-san, you seemed surprised when Hibiki-san said that he didn't tell anyone about the hemlock." Akako blinked. She hadn't noticed that. She'd been rather focused on Conan.

"Eh?" Aya-chan shifted nervously. "Oh, well, I was just surprised that he didn't tell me about it." Akako bit her lip. She could make this easier for Conan… It wasn't as if it would be a real hardship for her. She enjoyed flirting with women. Women weren't as strongly affected by her attractive aura, so they were a bit more of a challenge compared to men. Flirting with them was a testament to her looks and skill. Conan continued trying to pull information from the woman. His expression was becoming more and more frustrated. Akako made a decision. She stepped forward. "Aya-chan?" She said softly. The woman jumped and flushed. Akako smiled at her.

"Ak- Akako-san," She stuttered.

"Are you alright, Aya-chan?" Akako asked. "It must have been so traumatic to see a friend die."

"Y- yes, well, no. He wasn't exactly a friend." Aya-chan blushed fervently. Akako tilted her head, almost sadly.

"And, Hibiki-san?" Akako reached out and tucked a loose strand of hair behind Aya's ear. "Is he, 'not exactly a friend' also?" Akako could practically feel the heat of Aya's blush as she pulled her hand away.

"I- I mean… We are closer than Ishiwa-san." Aya admit. "We've gone out a few times. Nothing serious!" She hurried to add. Akako glanced down at Conan. He gaped up at her.

"Can I ask you something?" Akako said quietly, her lids lowered just enough to be flirtatious. Aya nodded fervently. "Do you think that Ishiwa-san deserved to die?"

It wasn't the question she was expecting. "Do I-? No!" This time her flush was of righteous indignation. "Of course not!" Akako frowned, genuinely confused.

"Then… Why are you protecting his killer?" Aya froze. "Aya?" Akako took a step closer. "I've been watching you all day." Akako enjoying this. "You're beautiful." She breathed. "But you're prettiest when you are telling the truth." Alright, that might have been pushing it, but it worked. Aya looked away guiltily.

"Hibiki-kun told me not to eat anything that Ishiwa-kun offered me." She admitted reluctantly.

"Did he say anything before he went to refill the water bottles?" Conan asked. Aya glanced down at him.

"Just that if he wanted a snack he knew where to find one." She replied. "Is that important?"

"Maybe," Akako smiled at her and took her hands. "You did great, Aya-chan." After a few more pleasantries Akako and Conan retreated.

"Did you get what you needed?" She asked Conan.

"I did. Thanks." Conan gripped his chin. He glanced between them. "Do you mind occupying her?"

"Not at all." Akako smiled. She returned to Aya's side and chatted with her while keeping one eye on the boy. He moved through the crime scene, dropping hints to the officers. When he reached the old man he pulled him down and whispered in his ear. He cast a glance at Akako, unintentionally meeting her eyes. Hakase straightened. The deduction show began.

"This was no accident nor suicide." He sounded uncertain, as if he were parroting someone else's words, someone else who was more confident. Akako smirked at Conan. "This was a murder."

"How?" Imoto-san, the one coworker Akako hadn't interacted with much, asked.

"By a very clever means…" The old man declared, uncertainly. "By using the victim's- uh, habit and the, um, area around him." Akako tried not to laugh as she watched Conan slump his face into his palm. Then squaring his shoulders and widening his eyes to look more innocent, Conan hurried up to Hibiki-san.

"Hey, onii-san." He said, all big-eyed innocence. "You know all about hemlock, don't you?" Hibiki-san blinked and looked down at him.

"Well, I know a bit." He admit, knowing that Conan already knew.

"Is this hemlock?" Conan flourished small branch in front of his face.

" _Conan-kun!_ " The female officer snapped in horror. " _Put that down this instant!_ " She snatched it away from him.

"Satou-san!" The male officer cried, concern evident for his partner.

"It's quite alright." Hibiki-san assured them with a laugh. "Its just fennel. Perfectly safe."

"Eh?" Conan exclaimed exaggeratedly. Akako was actually smothering her laughter at this point. "But it looks so much like hemlock!"

"It's called a look alike plant." Hibiki-san told him, kneeling. "One of those plants that adapted to look like a poisonous plant so that it's less likely to get eaten."

"So, can you eat fennel?" Conan asked. Hibiki-san suddenly hesitated. It had been one thing when he'd been assuring the officers that the boy was safe. This was different. This could reveal his plan.

"Of course, you can." Akako interjected, smiling as all eyes turned to heard. "I heard him telling Ishiwa-san that it tasted like licorice earlier today." Aya gasped audibly. Akako forced a frown, trying to act like a thought had just occurred to her. "But, you didn't warn him about the hemlock." She said thoughtfully.

"I just forgot!" Hibiki-san quickly defended himself.

"But you said that it was really scary!" Conan protested. "How could you forget about something that dangerous when you are eating something that looks like it?" The officers were surveying Hibiki-san with suspicion.

The old man yelped, and Akako saw that Conan had stepped on his foot. "Ah! Right, I mean," He cleared his throat. "You knew that Hibiki-san was a nervous eater." He stated as if he was remembering a script. Imoto-san was staring at Hibiki-san in horror.

"You were supposed to bring the snacks." He breathed. "You said that you forgot but…"

"So I forgot!" Hibiki-san snapped. "So what?"

"It gave you an excuse to tell Ishiwa-san about the fennel." The old man accused. "And the certainty that he would eat it."

"All that means is that he ate the hemlock by mistake." He insisted. "It's not my fault." Akako looked at Aya wavering beside her and took her hand. Aya-chan glanced at her. She tried to smile encouragingly. It must have worked because Aya took a deep breath, stepping forward and letting go of her hand.

"Then, why did you tell me not to eat anything he offered me?" Hibiki-san's head snapped towards her. "Why did you encourage him to keep eating the fennel while you weren't there?" She continued. She seemed to have become angry. "Why did you make me _watch him die?!_ " She demanded. "I'll never stop wondering if I could have stopped him! If I had just noticed him eating the fennel and told him to stop!"

"He would have just eaten it later!" Hibiki-san protested. "That's why I did it this way!" Silence followed his declaration.

"Hibiki Katsuki, you're under arrest for the murder of Ishiwa Rei." Satou-keiji pulled his hands behind his back and cuffed him. He glowered at them. His gaze only softened when he looked at Aya.

"You couldn't have done anything." He reiterated. Aya was crying as he was led away.

Akako was astonished. Her mouth was literally dropped open in shock. She couldn't believe it. Once she recovered she took two strides to stand next to Conan. "You did it." He looked up at her. "You _actually_ got him arrested."

"Eh?" Conan looked up at her, startled out of his smug smile. "No, it was Hakase." Akako gave him a look.

"You led everyone through the entire deduction. The old man just framed everything and I bet that you just told him everything before hand." She accused. Conan had the grace to look sheepish.

"Well, I wouldn't have been able to do it if you hadn't coaxed Aya-neechan into telling the truth." He shrugged. "Hibiki-san wasn't expecting her to give him up."

"Of course not, he thought she loved _him_." Akako rolled her eyes scornfully, she'd seen his type before. Someone who thought a few dates meant they were dating. Aya was just trying to work through her denial. Conan turned bright red.

"Yeah," Conan scratched his head awkwardly. "Um, you know you won't be able to call her until after the trial." He said. "Since you're both witnesses and all."

"Good, I prefer breaking men's hearts to breaking women's." Conan blinked, totally surprised. Akako smiled somewhat wickedly down at him. After a moment the boy laughed slightly. "Besides, I could tell that she wasn't comfortable with my flirting for more than just my gender. It's my age, I'm too young for her. She's not going to fall for some random high school girl." _Unless I really wanted her to._ Akako mentally added.

"True." Conan muttered. "Age puts limits on all kinds of things." She cocked her head curiously.

"What?"

"Nothing." Conan shook it off.

Akako looked at him then shrugged and glanced around. "Seems like the bug hunt is over."

"Yeah, usually we'd stick around but Hakase is going to take us home early." He gestured at the excited children talking to the old man. "He promised us cake if we caught a special kind of bug."

"But you caught a particularly heinous insect." Akako finished. "A murderer."

"You catch on quick." Conan grinned.

"Akako-san!" Mitsuhiko ran over to her and skidded to a stop in front of her. "You were amazing! Conan-kun told us how good you were!" Then he caught himself and turned bright red. "I mean, thanks. You did really well." He scuffed his toe in the dirt.

"You want to come celebrate with us?" Genta asked bounding up to her. "We have cake and candy and lemon pie!" Ayumi trailed after them, her smile faltering when she caught a good look at Akako.

"Genta-kun, I think that Akako-neesan is bus-" Conan began, looking slightly embarrassed by his friends.

"I'd love to." Akako interrupted. "If you think you'll have room for me?"

* * *

Never in her life had Akako been on such an uncomfortable ride. She sat in front, Ayumi sitting on her lap, legs cramped from the small foot space, and four children crammed into the back of a Volkswagen. Ayumi consistently shoot glares over her shoulder at the witch and would periodically adjust herself to stick her elbow into her. Doubtless, the girl had noticed Akako's charisma and was marking her territory. Akako found Ayumi's elementary school methods of cattiness amusing to the point of endearing. She had a certain charm to her that the witch was almost certain could be nurtured into that of a powerful aura similar to the one Akako had. Akako's more potent aura was probably what was making Ayumi feel threatened. Even in Akako's presence, Ayumi's charisma functioned adequately. Akako was enjoying the girl's ignorance as she set the two boys stumbling over their own feet to impress her while she only had eyes for Conan.

When they got to the professor's house the Detective Boys began to regale her with their exploits. Akako was fine with it. Since they were giving her background on Conan. She had to try hard not to cackle when the Detective Boys brought up KID on their own. It was only a matter of time. They were trying to impress her, and what was more impressive than going toe to toe with the infamous phantom thief Kaito KID?

"Mostly its just Conan." Ayumi interjected at the end of Genta's story about KID disguising himself as him. An impressive feat given their massive age difference. The kids had varying levels of frosting smeared around their mouths from the celebratory cake. "Conan has beaten KID so much that he's called the KID Killer!" There were practically stars and hearts twinkling in her eyes.

"We help too!" Mitsuhiko protested. "Don't you remember in that mansion?" Akako had heard the story once already and was rapidly losing interest. She took the moment while Genta and Mitsuhiko were trying to prove to Ayumi that they were just as important as Conan to slip into the kitchen that Conan and Haibara had gone to.

"Haibara, why is this lemonade so sour?" Conan was holding up his glass with a disgusted expression on his face.

"That one's for Hakase." Haibara took it away. "He's been sneaking sugar again."

"Couldn't you at least give him some sweetener?" Conan got some water to rinse out his mouth.

"That would ruin the lesson." Akako responded as she moved smoothly into the room. The little girl _almost_ smiled at that.

"She gets it." She informed the young detective, picking up the tray and walking into the living room with the lemonade. Conan directed a flat glare at her back as she departed.

"Sadistic scientist." He muttered under his breath, before turning to Akako. "Did you want something to drink Akako-neesan?" He asked, reverting to the innocent childlike demeanor he'd used while talking to the police and adults he didn't know well.

"I don't suppose you have any licorice tea." She responded with a smirk. Conan paused, and turned to her.

"Fennel? Really?" He raised an eyebrow in disbelief. Akako sat down at the

"It seems appropriate." Akako took a seat. "Fennel has many medicinal uses. And some think that it can cleanse, protect from evil, and is even said to protect against the dead." Akako tilted her head. "Though I suppose that the killer is in more need of that protection than you and I are." Conan gave her a funny look.

"You… know a lot about… um… superstitions then?" He asked, clearly trying to hide the distaste in his voice.

"I know a lot about _magic_." Akako corrected. Conan's face scrunched up in disgust at the very thought. Akako laughed. "But I am as knowledgeable of the practical and medicinal uses of herbs and minerals as I am the less scientific aspects." Conan still looked unconvinced, and Akako was struck with the desire to impress the boy. "For an example," She moved to the window and slide it open so she could see the flowers in the garden just outside. "I see three ways to kill someone and to save a life in this flower bed alone." Akako turned to the boy. Her eyes glinting in challenge. "Care to guess, detective?"

Conan hopped on to the counter and moved closer to the window on his knees. His eyes narrowed. He pointed. "Hydrangea," The large blue-purple flow waved innocently in the breeze. "The leaves contain cyanogenic glycoside. It breaks down into cyanide in the body." Akako inclined her head. "Larkspur, that one's lethal within six hours of ingesting it." The small deep purple flower was lining the bed, overshadowed slightly by slender white flowers with a yellow bell in the center, but that caused Conan to frown when he looked at them. "Who planted poet's daffodils in there? There are kids here!" Conan scowled. "That's exactly the type of flower Ayumi would pick, if she grabbed it with a cut on her hand it could kill her!"

"Quickly too. Poet's daffodil, though I prefer the name 'poet's narcissus' would probably affect a child's heart quite rapidly." Akako agreed. "Just the smell of them in a closed room can cause headaches." Akako smiled slightly as she remembered the bouquet of poet's narcissus that she had sent to a rather unpleasant rival at her old school. The other girl had been out sick for days before, Akako presumed, the flowers wilted and were discarded.

Conan leaned back. "Thanks for pointing this out." He rubbed his chin. "I'll let Haibara know. She can have Hakase get rid of them."

Akako blinked. "That's not really necessary, is it?" She rather liked the garden. It was full of possibilities.

"Not with the Detective Boys around." Conan shook his head.

"Why don't you just tell them that they're poisonous?" Akako asked. "Or better yet, teach them about the plants? They're budding detectives after all." Conan blinked at her.

"I guess so…" Conan considered the possibility.

"Besides," Akako added. "You forgot the plants that could save a life."

"The yarrow," Conan answered, distractedly. "It slows the bleeding of a wound. If someone was attacked chewing a few leaves and then putting the poultice in the wound could stop someone from bleeding out."

"That's one." Akako nodded. "So what's the other two." Conan blinked. "I said three ways to kill someone and save a life." Akako smirked. Conan turned back to the flowerbed. He contemplated the plants for a long while; while Akako's smile widened.

"It's risky…" Conan glanced at Akako. "But poet's daffodil, though extremely dangerous could be used to force someone to throw up, which could save their life if they had just eaten poison." He paused " _If_ you got the dosage exactly right."

"I would." Akako responded, she was an expert with spells, potions, and herbs. She could do something as simple as that. Conan considered her with his sharp eyes, and glanced back at the garden.

"Clever, but dangerous." He admit. "I'm not sure it's worth the risk." Akako shrugged.

"If they are going to die anyway, it's not exactly a risk, is it?" She pointed out. Conan grimaced.

"I don't like it." He muttered. Then returned his gaze to the flowerbed. Minutes passed and Akako could see from his face he was becoming more and more frustrated. She tried not to laugh.

"Want a hint?"

"No." He snapped.

"Not all parts of a plant are the same."

"I said I didn't want a-" Conan stopped, and he groaned. "The hydrangea," he brought his hand to his forehead in exasperation with himself. "Its roots can be used to treat kidney problems. Not _exactly_ saving a life, but definitely medical."

"They also can be used as antioxidants." Akako added, smugly. "And to dispel hexes." Conan gave her a look and she just smirked back. "Well, do I pass?"

"Shouldn't I be asking you that?" Conan shot back. He glanced outside again and sighed. "Yeah, you did. Actually it was pretty interesting."

"You did a lot better than I was expecting." Akako complimented him. She liked the little boy with the big brain. She and Conan lifted their heads as they heard a clatter from the next room.

Professor Agasa burst through the door. "Conan-kun, I just got a call from a client. One of the bird feeders I made her is malfunctioning and now she can't get out of the house. There's just too many birds."

"I told you that thing was a bad idea." Conan muttered.

"I have to get over there right away." Agasa continued, almost tripping over himself in his haste. "You and Ai-kun are in charge."

"Obviously." Conan nodded. Akako blinked.

"Wait, what do you mean he's in charge?" She asked. The witch might not know much about children, but she doubted it was normal to leave a group of them alone for any length of time. "He and Haibara-chan can't be much older than the others."

"Eh, but they're-" The old man began. Conan started coughing furiously. "Ah, uh, very responsible for their age." Agasa stumbled over his words as though he'd suddenly realized what he was saying. Akako frowned at him. That seemed like an irresponsible stance to take, even for an absent-minded professor.

Agasa seemed suddenly struck by inspiration. "Koizumi-san, you aren't doing anything for a few hours, are you?"

Akako was instantly on guard. Somehow the old man's expression reminded her of Aoko's right before the girl asked her if she wanted to do something. "Why?"

"Do you mind babysitting for a little bit?" He asked. Akako froze. On the one hand, it gave her plenty of time with Conan. She could discern how to best use him to her advantage. On the other hand, she would be responsible for five children. She didn't know how to handle children!

Akako cast a glance at Conan, who was glaring at Agasa with an almost affronted expression on his face. It was an ideal opportunity to spend an extended amount of time with the child detective who had infiltrated the thief's heart. "Very well," Akako agreed.

Conan took Agasa aside and whispered furiously with him before the inventor left. However, Akako was too distracted by the other Detective Boys bursting into the room to hear much of what they were saying.

"We don't need a babysitter." Genta informed Akako. His arms were crossed and he glared up at her. He would have been intimidating if she were ten years younger. Instead she had to smother a laugh at someone half her size trying to menace her. Any budding crush had been suppressed in the face of his indignation.

"He's right." Mitsuhiko added. She was pleased to note that his cheeks were still tinged red. "We've faced murderers, kidnappers, and even terrorists all by ourselves. We can handle a few hours alone." Privately Akako thought that the boy had just given her a far better argument for why they _desperately_ required a babysitter.

"You've dealt with all of that?" Akako asked. They must be exaggerating. The children were no more than seven years old. While she could believe that today was not their first experience with crime (they had been fairly self assured, much more than the adults) they couldn't have been caught up in _too_ many cases.

"Yep!" The boys answered in tandem, puffing out their chests. Akako swallowed a grin.

"Well then you can protect me from any bad men who want to kidnap me, won't you?" Akako gave them her best femme fatale-damsel in distress half smile.

The boys turned bright red. "Y- yes!" They almost shouted in unison. Akako smirked in satisfaction and glanced at the other children. Haibara leveled her with a flat look. Ayumi glanced tentatively between her and Conan then returned her attention to Mitsuhiko and Genta when they started to squabble. Akako moved back over to Conan.

"You handled that well." Conan grinned at her, both impressed and approving.

"Boys…" Akako shrugged carelessly with a little smile. "Though I do wonder just how much of what they said was true." Conan shifted uncomfortably under her appraising eye. "I would normally attribute everything they said to a pair of over active imaginations, but given their decorum at a murder scene and your impressive detective skills," The boy blushed. "I have to wonder…"

"It's all true!" A chipper voice interrupted them. Akako looked down to find Ayumi staring up at her. "We found our first murder a little bit after Conan came to school, and then it just kept happening, and Conan _always_ gets us out of it!" Akako smiled a little bit at her defense of the boy. Ayumi's eyes narrowed. She clearly thought Akako was still humoring her. "Come here!" She grabbed Akako's hand and dragged her into the living room, leaving the boys behind. The little girl sat Akako down and reached into the shelf under the coffee table. "Here!" She dropped a scrapbook on Akako's lap. "Look at that if you don't believe me!" Akako offered the little girl one last amused glance, and opened the book to a random page.

The scrapbook slipped from her hands and fell open on the floor. Akako stared down at it, instantly queasy. She had opened to a photo displaying what appeared to be an elevator shaft with a decomposing body lying on top of it. Ayumi rescued the scrapbook and dumped it firmly in her lap again. "This is one of our earlier murder cases." She informed her. She sat next to Akako. "We were trapped in the library with the man who did it. He tried to kill us too." She paused. "It's funny. I don't actually remember his name… I guess that they all kind of blur together after awhile." Akako was not squeamish. Witches couldn't be. But the photos that Ayumi showed her for the next ten minutes, alternating between blasé and slightly smug, were positively blood curdling. By the time Conan found them and snatched the scrapbook away from the mildly traumatized witch, Akako was of the opinion that these children should never be left alone again… _ever_. Akako stared at him as he berated Ayumi for showing Akako her scrapbook. Conan had been exposed to far more cases than the Detective Boys… Just how much had he seen? Akako felt a strange protective feeling wind around her chest.

Ayumi was looking close to tears as Conan continued. "There's a reason that you leave it here! It's because most people don't get it and it would freak them out, including your parents! I expect this from Mitsuhiko and Genta, not you, Ayumi!" Haibara put a hand on his arm.

"Enough, Edogawa-kun." She said firmly. "Ayumi, you know better than that."

"Uh-huh," The little girl sniffed, trying not to cry.

"Come on, let's go get some snacks." Haibara steered the girl out of the room, stomping on Conan's foot as she did so.

"Ouch!" Conan hopped on one foot. Then he noticed Akako staring at him. He rubbed the back of his head awkwardly.

"I'm sorry about that." He muttered. Akako shook her head.

"It's fine." She looked after Ayumi and Haibara thoughtfully. "It was… difficult to take the stories as anything more than exaggerations, god knows I hear enough of people trying to make themselves sound good, but now… its real." She reached out and put a hand on the boy's head. She didn't _sense_ a curse, so that eased her mind a bit.

"Akako-neesan," Conan touched her knee and looked up at her with big blue eyes. "The important thing to remember is that, while all of that happened, we got out of it. All of us." Akako considered this. "I can handle whatever life throws at me, and I can protect Haibara and the Detective Boys." Coming from a seven-year-old child, this shouldn't have been reassuring… but coming from Edogawa Conan, the KID Killer, somehow it was.

"Conan… What do you think about Kaito KID?"

Conan blinked. "KID?" Akako nodded.

She peered at Conan. "I suppose that KID is truly the lesser of the evils that you have to face on what seems to be a daily basis." To Akako's surprise, Conan started laughing.

"KID's not evil!" He chuckled. "Annoying, immature, and more juvenile than Genta, but he's not _evil_." Akako tilted her head.

"So, do you like him?" She asked. Conan snorted with his laughter.

"No." His laughter fell away, though he still seemed amused. "He provides an interesting puzzle but I don't particularly _like_ him." Akako smiled. The sadist in her reveled in Kaito's affection for the detectives appearing as fruitless as her affections for him. "He's kind of like…" Conan paused and considered his next words. "He's like that annoying rival that you would sort of miss if he were gone. You know?"

"I don't." Akako responded. Conan shrugged.

"I like his heists; it's nice being able to solve a mystery without dead bodies falling from the sky, again." Akako surprised herself by laughing at Conan's morbid humor. "I don't have to like the player to play the game." Akako grinned.

"I guess not." She stood up and started for the kitchen, Conan on her heels. "So how exactly does a bird feeder malfunction?"

"I'm just glad it didn't explode."

* * *

Akako stayed with the Detective Boys longer than she'd intended. When it got dark enough that they decided it was time to go home she walked the group to each of their houses, despite their protests that they could get home themselves. They settled down quickly when she treated them to ice cream, which doubled as a bribe to convince Haibara to come along with them (a bribe that Akako wasn't convinced would have worked without Ayumi's impressive puppy dog eyes and exuberant excitement, she truly did have the group wrapped around her finger). Their parents were surprisingly normal. Ayumi had quickly talked Haibara and her parents into having Haibara over for a sleepover, relieving Akako of any responsibility if Agasa-hakase still hadn't been home. She dropped off Conan last, by design. She wanted to talk to his guardian.

"I'm home!" Conan called, glancing uncertainly over his shoulder at Akako, who was still following him, despite his not so subtle hints that he could make it up the _stairs_ himself.

"Welcome back!" Ran called, turning to add some spicing to the pot on the stove. She pause as she saw Akako out of the corner of her eye. "Oh, I'm sorry, miss. Are you here to see my father? I'm afraid that the agency is closed." She was looking at her with some apprehensive disapproval, but not the outright hostility most girls directed at her. More like she was worried about something…

"No, I'm Koizumi Akako." She stepped forward as she introduced herself. "I…" Akako glanced down at Conan. "I ran into Conan and his friends at the bug hunt, and ended coming back with them for cake." Ran's expression was morphing into a pleasant smile. "Agasa-hakase had an emergency and I agreed to look after the children."

"Thank you for looking after them, Koizumi-san. I'm Mouri Ran." She was distracted a moment, turning back to the pot to stir it. "Sorry, you caught me right in the middle of making dinner."

"Think nothing of it." Akako assured her smoothly. "Actually, I wanted to give you this." Akako reached into an empty pocket and pulled out a card with her name and number on it. "I quite enjoyed my time with Conan and his friends today. If you ever need a sitter, please, don't hesitate to call."

"Oh," Ran hesitated before she took the card. "Thank you." Akako frowned internally. She didn't seem like she would call… That wouldn't do. Maybe a simple charm to make her more amenable to her.

The card glowed faintly red. "I understand that you might not be comfortable with a stranger looking after Conan. Maybe we could have coffee." If the spell worked Ran should wave off the coffee but still trust Akako like she was a long time acquaintance.

"Why wait? Stay for dinner, I'd love to get to know you better." Ran returned to her cooking. Akako blinked. Either her spell had worked _too_ well or Mouri Ran was just _that_ friendly. "I've made plenty."

Akako mentally prepared herself to win Ran over.

Conan was on his phone. After a while he started quizzing Akako on the affects of various herbs. She relished surprising him when she listed indications of exposures to different plants and minerals. She couldn't resist throwing in a few facts about magic and charms, which interested Ran as much as it exasperated Conan. Ran and Akako laughed at the boy as he tried to debunk their 'evidence for magic'. Conan eventually crossed his arms and pouted, trying to ignore them.

"Come on, Conan, don't be rude to our guest." Ran chided him.

Conan looked at Akako reluctantly and blushed slightly at his childish behavior. "I guess I can tolerate the magic if it comes with a masterful knowledge of botany." He sighed. Akako laughed. It seemed Conan liked her too.

Ran looked relieved as she got a text from her father saying that he wouldn't be home for dinner. "Good, then he can't harass Akako-neesan." Conan muttered. Akako smiled. So that's what Ran had been nervous about when she'd first arrived. Her father making a fool of himself over a high school girl. She preened slightly.

Akako, Ran, and Conan sat down for dinner. Akako was so comfortable that she didn't even realize that she was laughing and enjoying her time with two people who weren't even romantically attracted to her until after Ran was bidding her goodnight and promising to call if she needed a hand with Conan. She hadn't felt so relaxed around other people since… well, the last time she and Hakuba had managed to get away from Kaito for an hour or so.

How strange…

* * *

Kaito was beaming as he read the article about the bug hunt. Good old Agasa-hakase, it was always reassuring to be reminded that Conan had someone as faithful as Jii-chan in his corner. Someone willing to act like a detective for him. Plus, no Mouri meant no DetectiveFan annoying him in the comments.

 **kidzrule:** _I hope that Conan knows how amazing this is. Seriously, who recognizes this stuff? It's one thing to come up with tricks, it's just as amazing to see through them to the truth…_

 **HeinseiTeen4869:** _I'm sure that he appreciates your support. It was a clever trick. Too bad more people can't put their thoughts towards more noble pursuits._

 **DetectiveFan:** _Stop encouraging him, HeinseiTeen4869. If that brat ever_ _does_ _see these posts he's going to think he's some kind of superhero and do something dumb!_

 **kidzrule:** _DetectiveFan of Fakes?! What are you doing here?! This isn't even an article about Mouri!_

 **HeinseiTeen4869:** _Oh no, not again…_

* * *

 **_If the witch can remember all she will see…_ **  
**_Then she will become an invaluable key…_ **

**...witness**

 **She will become an invaluable key witness.**

 **Now then, Ayumi... She seems out of character here. There IS a reason for that. In the series, Ayumi has proven that she feels threatened by older women because Conan seems interested in older women (for reasons that are obvious to us). Akako is _gorgeous_ and exudes that charm of hers. Ergo... Ayumi is threatened by Akako. Plus, I have this theory that Ayumi and Ran have the same kind of aura that Akako has, but Akako has learned to channel hers. Ayumi naturally sees this stronger aura as a threat while Ran isn't around any boys her own age when she's first exposed to Akako. Haven't you noticed how people fall for Ran left and right? And Ayumi? You can't tell me that Mitsuhiko and Genta are the _only_ boys in class with a crush on that girl.**

 **Also, the scrapbook... I don't know, it seems like something Ayumi might start doing and Haibara would encourage because she'd find it amusing. I am 90% sure that in Ayumi's scrapbooks there are beautiful pictures of her and her friends getting ice cream and having fun at the park right next to the ones of brutal murder and important clues.**

 **Regarding the plants, the only thing I'm not really sure about is how much poet's daffodil to make you throw up. I mean, it does make you vomit in smaller doses, but NEVER (and I can't stress this enough) NEVER try it. Out off the three I listed here, Poet's Daffodils are probably scariest. If you handle it with a cut and some of it gets into the wound it could paralyze your freaking heart! I'm not sure if it could actually be used just for vomiting, but it so seemed like it would be something Akako and Conan talked about.**

 **And yes, all of this stuff could be growing in your yard! It is scary the stuff we plant!**


	4. Making Some Magic

Akako was considering her options. It was pretty clear that Kaito cared for Hakuba and Conan far more than they cared for him. The thief had an almost unbridled affection for his pursuers (though when Akako consulted her mirror she confirmed that it was in no way romantic, all that remained solely directed at Aoko, to the witch's displeasure). So here, Akako came to an impasse. Should she use the carrot or the stick? Normally she would use the stick. She would cast a spell on Hakuba and Conan, making them enamored with her. She would, of course, have to modify Conan's to something a bit more age appropriate, schoolboy crush perhaps. The detectives were slightly resistant to her charms but they would still succumb easily if she put any real effort into it. However… She found that she wasn't terribly inclined to do that.

Akako was rather enjoying her time with the boys. Besides, threatening Kuroba had never been very effective. No. It would be better if he owed her. A bribe she'd give him without his knowledge, by the time he found out, he wouldn't risk losing it…

Scarlet magic centered around romance, but there were spells that fostered friendship. Spells that planted a seed of trust and fondness that could grow into something more. Akako smiled. Yes, she'd tried and failed with punishment. Now she would tempt him. Make him grateful. Then make him hers.

Akako went through her books and found the perfect spell. Something that strengthened existing feelings and tinged them with affection rather than planting anything false. It seemed truer for the moral and honest detectives.

Akako prepared the ingredients and as steam rose from the cauldron she held out her hand and began chanting.

* * *

Across town, on a futon in Beika, Edogawa Conan woke with a start. He rubbed his eyes, uncertain what had woken him up. Usually it was Occhan coming in late, or Ran checking on him before she went to bed. He stretched and yawned widely. The glowing clock told him it was barely eleven. He stood up and went to get a glass of water. Ran was sitting at the table and talking quietly on the phone. "Ran-neechan?" He asked. Ran jumped and looked at him.

"Conan-kun! I'm sorry, did I wake you?"

"No." He shook his head, and stepped forward. "Is that Sonoko-neechan?" He could hear a few words piping through the line.

"Yeah." Ran nodded.

"Could you ask if Jirokichi-jiisan's gonna issue another challenge to Kaitou KID?" He asked. Ran blinked.

"Why didn't you ask her when you saw her today?" She asked. Conan shrugged. Ran sighed and braced herself for at least fifteen minutes of gushing about 'KID-sama' as she repeated Conan's question. The predictable squeal and torrent of words revealed that the egotistical old man didn't have anything planned. To Ran's surprise Conan held up his hand, silently asking for the phone.

"Um, Sonoko, Conan-kun wants to talk to you." Ran interrupted a particularly torrid story involving KID, Makato, and an engagement ring.

"What? That pipsqueak?" Sonoko began as Ran gave Conan the phone.

"Sonoko-neechan?" Conan interrupted whatever might have come next. "Shinichi-niichan told me that you have a moonstone tiara. I bet KID would like that."

Sonoko shrieked at an inhuman level. "Oh my god! You're right! I can't believe I never thought of that before!" Conan held the phone away from his ear. "Well, it's not mine. It's the family's, but jii-san will _totally_ go for it! I'll call him right now!" Sonoko hung up. Conan closed the phone and handed it back to Ran.

"What was that about?" Ran took back the phone, gazing at her ward. Conan shrugged.

"Just thought it would be fun…"

* * *

Hakuba Saguru glanced up from the file he was reading. Then he looked back down and continued reading it as if nothing had happened.

* * *

Kaito had planned this prank since Career Day. "Kaito!" Aoko chased the prankster around in her policewoman uniform, wielding the police baton the way she did a mop. All around the room people were dressed in the clothing of the jobs they'd shown the most interest in. Kaito himself was wearing a snazzy looking tuxedo with tails and doing even more tricks (albeit traditional ones) than usual. Kaito used the shoulders of a jump suited future garbage man to launch himself to the ceiling where he braced himself beyond the reach of Akako's terrifying baton (which was thankfully shorter than her usual malicious mop). A girl in a bunny costume flirted with boys dressed as salary men and lawyers, all of whom blushed furiously, uncertain what to do. Keiko was happily reporting everything into her microphone ("and she's got him on the ropes, ladies and gentlemen! Will this put a stop to Kuroba's current reign of terror?") A boy dressed as a groomer was chasing the dog Kaito had poofed into his arms. And a girl dressed as a sushi chef was hotly informing anyone who questioned her that there was _no reason_ a woman shouldn't make sushi anymore. She proved herself to be effective enough with the knives that Kaito had no doubt that she'd make an excellent sushi chef one day, and maybe flay a few misogynists along the way.

Such was the scene when Hakuba Saguru walked into the classroom. Hakuba's observant eyes moved around the room. From the boy holding the yapping dog to Keiko's action packed reporting to the female sushi chef poised on the edge of what looked like the murder of a pastry chef. Then, Hakuba did the one thing no one was expecting.

He laughed.

It wasn't much, just a quiet chuckle, but it was enough to make the entire class freeze. Aoko dropped her baton and Kaito fell off the ceiling in shock. Hakuba made his way to his desk where he promptly took his seat and removed his notebook. He looked up and found Kaito standing in front of him.

"May I presume you have something planned for me as well, Kuroba?" He stated more than asked. Kaito hesitated. He _had_ prepared a Sleeping Kogoro outfit for the Brit (the most embarrassing detective he could think of), but Hakuba's tone was different today. Instead of resigned and irritated, it was almost… fond. Kaito didn't want to antagonize the detective and lose the perplexing way Hakuba was speaking to him. But he couldn't NOT do something. Did he have any other outfit that would work? Then he grinned. Hakuba and Kaito were covered in white smoke. When it cleared, the entire class was surprised to see that Hakuba was wearing the deerstalker cap and matching inverse that had 'mysteriously' vanished a few months earlier. (People had been making fun of it, plus Kaito had heard more than one member of the police force muttering about how hard it was to take the teen detective seriously when he was wearing it.) It was worth returning the silly cosplay (which he had hidden in a wall panel where he kept the rest of his impossible props for school) to see Hakuba's delight and surprise.

"I knew you took it." He muttered, but he couldn't contain a small smile.

"That just means you knew I'd return it." Kaito teased, then he nearly kicked himself. Why the heck had he brought up KID when Hakuba had apparently forgotten that he couldn't stand him? Kaito slammed a smile of a poker face into place while he watched Hakuba apprehensively for his response. A disappointed expression passed over Hakuba's face.

"Just because you return something, doesn't make taking it in the first place okay." He admonished him. Kaito waited for more, but Hakuba just opened his notebook, still wearing that slightly disappointed expression. Kaito blinked. Was that all?

Instinct, more than conscious thought told him to step back, narrowly avoiding being mauled by a mop. "BaKaito!" Aoko shrieked, mop in one hand, baton in the other. "You know how much Hakuba-kun likes that outfit! How dare you take something so important?!" Kaito avoided the mop until the teacher (who had a yard stick glued to one hand and an apple glued to the other) managed to whack both of them over the head with the yardstick and send them back to their seats.

Kaito stole a glance at Hakuba, catching his eye. The detective offered a small, resigned smile before returning his attention to the front of the class. Kaito felt his mouth twitch with genuine happiness… and utter confusion. What was going on?

* * *

Hakuba's strange behavior persisted throughout the day. Hakuba acted just as he usually would, but his actions towards Kaito were tinged with warmth; each eye roll was accompanied by a faint smile, every admonishment delivered with a touch of disappointment as if he expected better from the magician. Kaito didn't understand it. It could have been a ploy of some kind. Something to make Kaito drop his guard, but Hakuba couldn't fake emotions like that. Not like Kaito and Tantei-kun could. Kaito was still mulling over it, stealing glances at the detective, when Aoko slammed both hands on his desk.

Kaito jumped, fell out of his chair and made it look intentional by doing a roll and popping up a comfortable distance away from Aoko. "Ahoko! What the heck?!" He scowled at her.

"You weren't listening to Aoko, BaKaito!" She snapped.

"You weren't saying anything important." He snapped back, though he had no idea what she'd been talking about. Aoko looked about ready to explode, her face reddening. He'd already been chased with a mop once today, so he leaned it and poofed a rose in her face. Her eyes narrowed. Then she snatched the rose.

"You're buying Aoko ice cream." She informed him.

"What?!" He protested. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Hakuba look up. Kaito turned to him, and Hakuba glanced away.

"Perhaps Hakuba and I could accompany you." Kaito stiffened as Akako spoke from behind him. He turned rigidly.

"I would enjoy that." Hakuba responded, with a smile. "If you'll have us, of course."

"That's great! Kaito's treating!" Aoko beamed.

"Hey!" Kaito protested, but let himself be dragged out of the classroom, carefully maneuvering the two of them between Hakuba and Akako.

Kaito found himself standing beside Hakuba as Aoko enthusiastically engaged Akako in conversation. Hakuba had a small smile on his face. "What are you grinning about?" Kaito asked. Hakuba blinked.

"I didn't realize I was." He admitted. "I suppose I'm just in a good mood." Hakuba adjusted the strap of his bag. "I was thinking about our project." Kaito's expression soured.

"And that makes you _happy_?" Hakuba rolled his eyes.

"I had an idea." He said. "A project on the history of spiritualism." Kaito's face scrunched up in confusion. "As seen through the perspective of Harry Houdini." Kaito's eyebrows shot up. Hakuba's keen gaze measured his reaction. "Acceptable?"

"Surprising." Kaito responded. " _You_ want to do a project about a magician?"

"No, I want to do a project on a man who exposed a bunch of fakes." Hakuba grinned. "You do know what Houdini did to mediums, don't you?" The conversation continued from there. It was as much an argument about whether Houdini qualified as a detective as it was planning for the project. Their discussion was cut short when they reached the ice cream parlor. Kaito enthusiastically ordered a chocolate milkshake, Aoko got something too sweet for even Kaito, Akako considered her choices before ordering a strawberry ice cream with chocolate chips, and Hakuba got a single scoop of mint chip. Kaito reached for his wallet in resignation but before he could take it out, Hakuba had paid.

"Hey!" Kaito protested. Hakuba turned and raised an eyebrow.

"Yes?" Kaito scowled at him.

"It was supposed to be _my_ treat." His jaw clenched. It had always bothered him how Hakuba was so used to buying things for the people he was with. He got the sense that in England people kept Hakuba around more to buy things than as a friend.

"But Aoko volunteered you for it." Hakuba argued, looking perplexed. Kaito's scowl transformed into a smirk as he realized that he could use this to his advantage, even if Hakuba's bizarrely good mood with him dissipated later.

"Fine, you just have to let me pay next time." He smirked at him.

Hakuba smiled back. "So, we'll be doing this again?"

"Duh!" Kaito shoved him towards the booth where the girls were already seated.

"It's so nice to see that you two are getting along." Aoko looked especially childish with a smear of ice cream beside her mouth.

"We finally picked a topic we could both agree on." Hakuba informed her.

"Ah! Akako and I decided to do a project on powerful female nobles with a focus on England." Aoko was practically bouncing in her seat with excitement. "She said she got the idea from you, Hakuba-kun."

"I know a bit about English nobility." Hakuba inclined his head.

"I trust that you will be available for a consult should we require it?" Akako smiled at him.

"He'll be busy with our project." Kaito interrupted before he could speak. He leaned forward and slightly in front of the detective. He wasn't actually shielding him from the witch, but he'd assumed a clear protective posture.

"I will always be available to you." Hakuba assured Akako, shifting away from Kaito slightly. Kaito glared at Akako. He scooted next to Hakuba again.

Akako smiled at the boys. "We are still picking which one we want to write about. Aoko wants to do a princess, and I'm looking forward to investigating the more powerful ones."

"Have you considered Queen Victoria?" Hakuba inquired. "She had quite an impressive reign." Before Akako could answer, one of the waiters came over with a confused expression on his face.

"Telephone for you, miss." He said. Akako excused herself and walked towards the counter. He scowled after her, putting himself more directly between her and Hakuba as she moved. Then he turned back to Aoko and Hakuba with a smile pasted on his face.

"Hakuba agreed to do a project on Houdini."

"He wore you down?" Aoko looked at Hakuba sympathetically.

"Actually it was my idea." Hakuba had a slight smile. "I thought of a way for both of us to enjoy the subject."

"Turns out that Houdini was a bit of a critic of mediums." Kaito curbed his smirk at Hakuba's sharp glance. "He debunked them."

"It seemed like a reasonable combination of magic and deduction." Hakuba added, still looking at Kaito. "Though I thought that Koizumi-san could help us with some of the history of spiritualism." Kaito lost his smile.

"No way!" He exclaimed vocally. Hakuba stared at him with open curiosity.

"Why not?" He asked. Internally Kaito spluttered.

"You don't want to offend her." He adlibbed. "Koizumi believes all kinds of stuff, what if we disprove something she believes in during our research and presentation?" Hakuba considered it.

"I suppose that's reasonable." He muttered, reluctantly. "Though spiritualism has virtually no bearing on Wi-" He stopped and smiled as Akako returned to the table.

"I'm sorry, I have to leave." Akako apologized, her eyes were on Aoko and Hakuba; she was completely ignoring Kaito. That suited Kaito perfectly well, especially since she was _leaving_ and maybe now he could enjoy his time with Hakuba and Aoko without having to worry about the detective falling under her spell. "I'll see you soon, Aoko-chan, Hakuba-kun… Kuroba." She smiled at Hakuba, and swept out of the ice cream parlor.

 _Good riddance._ Kaito thought. He turned his attention back to Hakuba. "We'll have to explain how Houdini exposed the ways mediums faked contacting the dead." He remarked as if Akako had never interrupted.

"Are you sure that all of it _was_ faked?" Aoko asked with interest. "Keiko-chan was talking about some of that stuff a while ago, but I had to ask her to stop since she was scaring the other girls." Aoko had never been afraid of haunted houses or the supernatural. Probably because she didn't believe in most of it beyond simple charms.

"Houdini offered a cash reward for anyone with genuine supernatural abilities and it was never collected." Hakuba responded. "Despite the plethora of mediums and psychics at the time, none of them could fool him."

"Obviously." Kaito rolled his eyes. "Magicians recognize our own techniques, and Houdini was one of the best of us." Which was how he knew that Akako's magic was really the result of some unearthly power. A magician could tell the difference between magic and tricks.

"Perhaps it would benefit the rest of the class to reveal how these charlatans operate." Hakuba suggested. "It might make them less afraid of ghosts and the like." Kaito's eyes lit up.

"I could stage a séance!" He exclaimed. A pair of disapproving eyes were leveled at him. "No! Just follow me on this!" He excitedly bounced. "We stage a séance, make everyone believe I contacted the dead, and then reveal how I did it!" Aoko scoffed. She didn't approve of offering Kaito a legitimate way to prank the class. Hakuba on the other hand seemed to be considering it.

"Would you be willing to do that?" He asked curiously. "To expose the magic tricks that mediums used?" Kaito lost some of his energy.

"This isn't magic." He stressed. "Magic is meant to make people happy. We use the same tricks, but these were twisted to prey on others." He crossed his arms. "I don't mind exposing them, especially if it warns others in the future."

Hakuba startled Kaito with a brilliant grin. "It seems we understand each other." Kaito could feel his poker face slip as a genuine smile graced his expression. He and Hakuba… were getting along. His smile grew. This wasn't some ruse or Hakuba playing nice. They were really talking without jabs or taunts.

Kaito resisted the urge to throw his arm around Hakuba's shoulders. This was good. This was a start of a friendship he'd wanted for a long time. If he was careful, maybe he could keep it. Maybe this could be the new status quo.

"I think we should start on the history of spiritualism, before the séance." Hakuba continued. "Just so that everyone understands what it's all about."

Kaito tapped the table thoughtfully. "Alright, a bit like setting up the trick before performing it."

By the time Aoko had finished the last of her dessert, Kaito and Hakuba had planned out most of their presentation. When they left the ice cream shop, Hakuba waved them a friendly goodbye and Kaito found himself in a better mood than he'd been since he took up the mantle of KID. It might not last, but Kaito found himself praying that it would.

* * *

Akako knocked on the door of the Mouri Detective Agency. It was opened almost immediately by a rather frazzled looking Ran. "Oh, Akako-chan, thank goodness. I'm so sorry to call you on short notice!"

"It's no problem, Ran-chan." Akako assured her, stepping over the threshold. It might have been more difficult to get there without her broom (traffic was a nightmare, especially after school).

"Who answered your phone earlier, by the way?" Ran asked, running a brush hurriedly through her hair. "I thought I dialed the wrong number when a man answered, but he just asked me to hold."

"My phone was next to a friend of mine, and I thought I was about to miss the call." Akako lied smoothly. In reality, Akako didn't have a cell phone. She'd never had much need for one since didn't really have people she wanted to talk to. So she'd charmed the card she gave Ran so that it showed whatever landline she was closest to at the time and whom ever answered the phone knew to get Koizumi Akako immediately. Though between Hakuba, Ran, and perhaps Conan, it might be time to rethink a mobile phone.

"Oh, I'm sorry, did I interrupt something with your friends?" Ran paused in her rushed preparations, staring at the witch in distress.

"Not at all." Akako's smile softened slightly in the face of Ran's open concern. "I was looking for an excuse to leave, and I'm glad to see you and Conan again." Then on an impulse she rarely felt, she asked after Ran. "Where are you off to?"

"My friend, Sonoko, is rather insistent about a new dress and… accessories, to prepare for the KID heist her uncle is organizing. Some of the stores she wants to go to aren't exactly appropriate for a little boy." Ran blushed slightly, but continued. "Dad's on a fidelity case."

"It's an infidelity case, Ran-neechan." Conan corrected from the couch. He put down a copy of _Arsene Lupin vs. Herlock Sholmes_ , and hopped down to the floor. "Hello Akako-neesan." He greeted her with a slight smile.

"Anyway, thank you so much, Agasa-hakase is on one of his inventing binges and I don't like Conan there when that happens." Ran explained, looking for her wallet. "Things tend to get… explosive."

"Ran-neechan, here it is." Conan went to the counter and pulled the wallet out from under a drying cloth.

"Ah! Thank you, Conan-kun!" She took the wallet from the boy and tucked it in her purse. "Thanks again, Akako-chan! I'll treat you to some pastries soon!"

"Have fun, Ran-chan." Akako called.

"Bye Ran-neechan!" Conan came to stand next to the witch.

"Oh! And there is chicken for dinner in the fridge!" Ran added. Akako froze.

"Wait-" She started, but Ran had already run out the door and it was closing behind her. Conan looked up at Akako curiously.

"What's wrong?" He asked.

"Nothing…" Akako blushed slightly. "You aren't hungry, are you?" She silently prayed he wasn't. Conan considered her.

"Akako-neesan… have you…" Conan hesitated. "Akako-neesan, can you not cook?"

Akako scoffed. "Conan-kun, I can name every spice in that cabinet, tell you exactly what they taste like, and list their medicinal properties."

"I can't argue with that." Conan grinned. "But… can you use them to cook?" Akako was silent.

"No…" She reluctantly admitted. Conan laughed. Akako's face burned in embarrassment. "It's not my fault! I've never had to cook!" She protested.

"It's alright, Akako-neesan. I can't cook either. And I really should know by now." Conan assured her. It was at this moment that Akako realized that Conan had laughed at her, and she hadn't immediately wanted to exact vengeance on him. She wasn't even angry with him. It was unusual… but rather nice. Then, something occurred to her.

"Why should _you_ know by now? You're only seven." She peered at him curiously. He froze for a moment.

"Uh, just by watching Ran-neechan, she cooks a lot." He hurriedly lied, and changed the subject. "So do you want to eat out or try to cook the chicken?" Akako considered her options. "What are you thinking about?" Conan inquired curiously. Akako glanced at him.

"Do you really want to know?" She asked.

"You seem to be thinking awfully hard about a pretty simple question." Conan responded. "Maybe I can help?" Akako sighed.

"Usually I wouldn't mind going out." She explained. "But I'd rather people didn't flirt with me while you are with me." She'd discovered this when boys kept interrupting her conversations with Hakuba. She liked her attention to be on Hakuba when she was with him. She felt the same when she was with Conan. "On the other hand… I'd also rather not kill us both trying to cook chicken."

Conan tilted his head curiously. "Normally I'd argue that you couldn't kill us just by cooking. But given our combined knowledge of murder and lack of cooking skill, it actually seems rather likely." He rubbed his chin in a strangely adult way. "How about the middle ground? We order from the café downstairs and ask them just to bring it up?"

"That sounds lovely." Akako nodded in relief. Conan walked over to one of the drawers in the kitchen and rummaged through it looking for a menu.

Once they had ordered, Conan turned on the television. He flipped through the channels until he got to the news and put down the remote. He huffed in disagreement at something the anchor said. "What?" Akako glanced at the screen. She wasn't sure what the story had been and the woman had moved on to a puff piece on Okino Yoko.

"It's nothing." Conan frowned at the screen. "Just the news reporting stuff wrong, again."

"The news always sensationalizes things." Akako replied. "It's how they make money." Conan's eyes narrowed.

"Well, it shouldn't put spectacle above the truth." He crossed his arms petulantly.

"Maybe not." Akako sat beside the pouting child with a slight smile. "But it keeps people interested." Akako took the remote. "But I think that you get enough of this in real life. How about some fictional murders? My classmate mentioned that there was a subtitled _Sherlock_ marathon on tonight." Akako tried to change the channel. The screen was suddenly filled with static, up in the corner read 'no input detected'. Akako blinked. She looked at the remote closely and tried to remember what Aoko had done when this happened at her house. She pointed at the television and tried again. The news flickered back on, but this time it was dubbed in Spanish. Akako frowned. Conan snickered. Akako continued her valiant struggle with the remote until Conan took it from her.

"How the heck did you do this to the television?" Conan asked. He'd quickly lost his smile as he found himself unable to change the language setting, which had somehow landed on Russian. "This isn't even a _good_ Russian dub!" He scowled at the screen, and tried to at least change the channel to the _Sherlock_ marathon. Instead it got stuck on a romantic comedy. Akako sniggered as Conan growled.

"You know what? Let's try a movie instead." Conan got up and walked to the screen where he pressed a button to change the input. Then he turned on the DVD player and glanced under the television to find a movie. "Hm… Do you mind an old American film?" He asked, glancing back at Akako.

"Not at all, as long as there are subtitles or a dub." Akako agreed.

"Great." Conan popped a disk into the DVD player. The movie loaded and a menu for a movie called _To Catch A Thief_ came up on the screen. Akako didn't bother trying to hide her smile.

* * *

Hakuba's mindboggling behavior continued throughout the week, and Kaito was loving every moment of it. He would patiently endure Kaito's pranks; it might have helped that Kaito turned down his more extravagant, irritating hijinks so he didn't _actually_ make the detective angry. They found themselves united against Aoko in an argument over whether Japanese curry was better than Indian; both of them favored Indian, the argument ended when Aoko declared that she wouldn't cook for either of them anymore and Kaito quickly assured her that _her_ Japanese curry was superior and Hakuba received an invitation to try it that night. And, perhaps most astonishingly, Hakuba saw a flaw in one of Kaito's tricks and suggested a simple fix that made it much harder to figure out (Kaito instantly promised himself to _never_ use that modified trick as Kaitou KID, it seemed _wrong_ to make Hakuba an accomplice, even indirectly). They did argue, but instead of true disagreements, it had morphed into bickering, a friendly banter that Kaito usually only achieved with Tantei-kun. Hakuba accompanied Kaito and Aoko after school twice that week, but they always went out or to Aoko's house, neutral ground for both of them. That changed on Friday…

Just before the bell rang, and Kaito could make his usual flashy exit, Hakuba walked over to the magician. Kaito didn't look up, intent on a card castle he was constructing as part of his trick. "Kuroba," Kaito paused, Jack of Spades in hand, and looked at Hakuba. "We still have some work to do on our project." The detective visibly hesitated. "I was wondering if perhaps you would…" Hakuba faltered. Kaito frowned, what was he asking him.

When it became apparent that Hakuba wasn't sure what to say next, Kaito took the initiative to urge Hakuba on. "You want to do some of it today?"

"I believe that would be best." Hakuba looked and sounded relieved. Kaito hid his small smile. It was easy to forget just how socially awkward the detective was beneath his professional façade.

"Alright, let's meet at the library after school." He placed the jack and produced the ten of diamonds.

"I believe that we have exhausted the library's resources on our topic." Hakuba stated, emboldened by Kaito's casual acceptance of the invitation. "I had hoped that we might work at my home."

Kaito almost never slipped. He'd worked with cards before he could crawl, but in that moment the ten of diamonds fell from his hand and toppled almost the entire five-tier card castle. He momentarily gaped at Hakuba, who he could tell was nervous beneath his professional demeanor.

"Sounds good." Kaito instantly recovered his poker face of a smile, trying to act like nothing had shocked him. It was a difficult act to sell while he was sitting in front of the ruins of his card castle.

"Excellent." Hakuba turned and walked back to his desk. Kaito rapidly rebuilt his card castle, his mind moving faster than his hands.

The invitation to the detective's house was unexpected. It showed a modicum of trust that Kaito thought would never be extended to him. He had been enjoying the lull in their rivalry, indulging in the hope that they would be real friends, but in his heart, he hadn't really believed that it would happen. He'd thought that Hakuba would remember his dislike for thieves or that he would push the detective too far and ruin whatever had given Hakuba a positive attitude towards him or he would come on too strong and cause Hakuba to distance himself again.

Instead, it was Hakuba who was offering his friendship. Hakuba, who used his professional demeanor as a buffer to keep people at arms length, was making an effort that Kaito seldom saw him exert with others. Hakuba had deemed Kaito, a (suspected) thief and notorious prankster, worthy of his friendship. Once the card castle was finished Kaito came to his conclusion.

Hakuba had decided to be his friend. Kaito would do everything in his power to keep him from regretting that decision.

* * *

Kaito was surprised by Hakuba's house. He'd been expecting either some mansion or something small and nondescript, no middle ground. Instead, they were standing in front of a house slightly larger than Kaito's with a decent sized garden.

"What?" Hakuba asked glancing at him.

"You know, half the girls at school think you live in some kind of castle." Kaito commented, looking the house up and down.

"Don't be so whimsical, Kuroba." Hakuba responded drily. "The castle's in England." Kaito barked a laugh and Hakuba tossed him a faint but genuine smile before he made his way up the walkway.

"I guess it's too much to expect a giant mansion in the middle of a city." Kaito followed him. "But I bet I could make you think it was there, temporarily." The magician added. "That large a trick… You'd figure it out eventually."

"If Copperfield can make the Statue of Liberty vanish, I'm certain you could make a castle appear." Hakuba glanced back at him with clear amusement. "But you're right, the biggest tricks can be the easiest to figure out."

Hakuba and Kaito let themselves into the house. "Baaya, I'm home." Hakuba called, toeing off his shoes. "I already let her know that you were coming over." He informed Kaito. "She'll probably bring us snacks in the study."

"You have a study?" Kaito asked, impressed. Hakuba almost rolled his eyes, but appeared to catch himself.

"My father has a study, that he rarely uses." He corrected Kaito. "I end up using it more often. The computer is connected to my grandfather's research center and I frequently have to look things up."

"Research center?" Kaito repeated with interest, slipping his socked feet into a pair of slippers.

"My grandfather is interested in a lot of science." Hakuba explained. "It's where," He paused, then continued. "It's where I usually analyze evidence." His evidence about KID… Outwardly, Kaito appeared abruptly impassive, internally he desperately searched for a change in subject.

"I thought the police handled most of that." Kaito almost kicked himself for continuing the conversation.

"My grandfather's equipment is significantly more advanced." Hakuba explained, mounting the stairs to the second floor. "The research center is one of the things I miss most while I'm in England." Hakuba sighed. "I can't help but think that a fair number of killers walked free because I didn't have access to it."

"I doubt it was a 'fair number'." Kaito objected, immediately defensive of the detective. "You're almost as good a detective as I am a magician." Hakuba blinked at him, clearly startled.

"High praise, Kuroba." He observed. Kaito crossed his arms and scowled at Hakuba.

"Nothing but the truth." Hakuba stared at him, sharp, observant eyes moving over his posture, his face, and finally meeting his eyes.

"Thank you." He said quietly. Then he turned and walked the rest of the way down the hall. Kaito frowned and followed him. It hadn't even occurred to him that anyone other than Kaitou KID might be capable of escaping the detective, yet alone that he would feel responsible for their escape. He found it less than acceptable.

"Come in." Hakuba showed Kaito into an expensively furnished room. The dark polished wood desk sat in the center of the room, a computer screen on one side so that whoever sat in the massive leather chair behind the desk could look at anyone in the chair and couch between the desk and the door unencumbered. Hakuba walked past the desk, unimpressed and pushed the huge leather chair out of the way. He turned the screen towards the sofa and chair and pulled out a wireless keyboard, reaching under the desk to unplug various wires so that he and Kaito could work together side by side.

"Now," He straightened and gestured for Kaito to take a seat on the couch while he tugged the chair beside it a bit closer. "Houdini,"

Baaya did bring them snacks, English tea and biscuits, and then dinner when it became apparent that they weren't going to come down to the dining room. At some point, rather early on, they had spiraled away from their project and began researching random tangents that had taken their interest. Neither of them had noticed this happening, it was an organic process that resulted when a pair of curious minds were granted access to vast amounts of information.

It was only when they started investigating the possibility that Jane Austen died of arsenic poisoning that either of them realized just how far they'd strayed. "Wait," Hakuba said abruptly while Kaito was looking up the amount of arsenic contained in Victorian era make up. "What does this have to do with Houdini and spiritualism?" Kaito looked at him, uncomprehendingly for a moment, then back at the screen, and back at him again. Then he burst out laughing. After a moment, Hakuba started chuckling as well. It was good to hear Hakuba laugh. It wasn't loud or uncontrollable but it was genuine.

"Let's take a break." Kaito announced, once he'd gotten himself under control.

"Alright." Hakuba agreed, reaching for the dinner, chicken teriyaki.

"Hey, that's cold." Kaito stopped him, giving him a disapproving glare. "Let's go heat it up." He gathered up the bowls, not even bothering to be showy about it and bounded out of the study.

"That's not really necessary." Hakuba protested, trailing behind him. Kaito rolled his eyes. He wondered just how often Hakuba forgot to take care of himself when he became absorbed in what he was doing. Kaito stopped at the bottom of the stairs and looked both ways. "Left." Hakuba called.

Kaito turn left and found the kitchen three doors down. He spotted the microwave and popped the bowls inside. He turned just as Hakuba entered the kitchen. "So!" He said cheerfully. "What are your plans for this weekend?" Hakuba cocked his head curiously. "What? We can talk about something other than historical figures who died under mysterious circumstances."

"True." Hakuba agreed. "Tomorrow I'm going over some cold cases."

"Boring." Kaito scoffed. Hakuba really did roll his eyes at that.

"Not as boring as the Suzuki charity event that Father is having me go to in his place." He muttered. Kaito's ears perked up at the name Suzuki, he wondered if Conan would be there. "Though it sounds like it might be canceled or postponed." Hakuba added, hopefully. "Then I've got plans with… a colleague on Sunday." Kaito didn't miss Hakuba's hesitation or the wary glance that he gave him. Clearly he didn't want Kaito knowing about these plans. Kaito tried to squash his immediate sense of unease and desire to press for more. This was his only chance. He reminded himself. If he messed this up, he may well lose his opportunity to win the detective's friendship. It was better to leave it be. He didn't know if it had anything to do with KID. "Still it's better than next weekend." Hakuba visibly grimaced. "Next weekend I'm going to be tied up in court proceedings. One of the murderers I helped convict is trying for an appeal. The trial is in Gunma, so I'm going to be out of town all weekend."

"Ouch." Kaito muttered sympathetically.

The microwave beeped irritatingly and Kaito grabbed the food, literally juggling the bowls when he realized they were too hot. Hakuba eyed him, but didn't say anything about his display. "Let's eat." Kaito declared, putting the bowls down on the counter.

Hakuba took a seat and picked up his chopsticks. "What about you? Plans for the weekend?"

"Well, tomorrow I'm working on some new tricks." Kaito began.

"Boring." Hakuba scoffed, smirking at Kaito's overly dramatic glare while the magician hid his own grin.

"Then Sunday I think that Aoko is going to be dragging me around shopping." Kaito sighed.

"Oh, the horror." Hakuba said flatly.

"Clearly you've never been shopping with her." Kaito shot back. Hakuba shrugged.

"Fair enough." Hakuba looked at him thoughtfully. "Kuroba, I know that we are almost done with the project, but I was wondering if, perhaps… you would like to do this again sometime?" Kaito practically beamed at the detective.

"Sounds good to me."

* * *

 **This chapter was going super long (I was at twelve pages and barely halfway done). So I decided to just make it two chapters. The first half was going to focus more on Hakuba and the second on Conan. So the next chapter will be more focused on Conan. That being said, I think I've decided to move up a meeting between two characters.**

 **Clearly the person that Hakuba has plans with Sunday is none other than Akako, whom Hakuba knows Kaito doesn't like for some reason. Which is why he's hiding it.**

 **I was actually thinking of a different movie than _To Catch a Thief_ but I couldn't for the life of me remember what it was. But _To Catch a Thief_ works just as well. **

**Kaito and Hakuba really started finding their voice with each other in the last part. I was pleased with that. Some of it was hard because Kaito had no idea what was going on and he was just dying for all of it to be real.**

 **FYI The KID heist hasn't been announced just yet. ^_^**


End file.
